French finance minister Francois Fillon delivers a speech at a meeting of the ruling party, following which, lawmakers approved the hefty budget. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
PARIS - FRENCH lawmakers adopted on Wednesday the 2009 budget that will see the public deficit swell to 3.9 per cent of gross domestic product due to additional spending to boost the economy.
Lawmakers in both the National Assembly and the Senate approved the budget with a deficit of 79.3 billion euros (S$164 billion), up from 57.6 billion in earlier drafts.
On December 4 the French government announced a 26-billion-euro plan of investments and spending to boost the economy.
'The 2009 public deficit will reach 3.9 per cent of gross domestic product, but the 2012 deficit will still come close to one percent of gross domestic product,' said Budget Minister Eric Woerth.
Members of the eurozone are supposed to keep their public deficits under three per cent of gross domestic product.
The budget adopted Wednesday also forecasts slower growth in 2009, between 0.2 and 0.5 per cent, compared to the 1-1.5 per cent forecasted in earlier drafts. -- AFP
