 "As France battles debt crisis, a ‘rockstar’ economist polarises nation’s politics")
As France deals with a ballooning debt crisis and a political deadlock around it, economist Gabriel Zucman has emerged as the most polarising figure. His proposed 2% wealth tax —dubbed the ‘Zucman tax— on all households earning above €100 million has divided the French politics.
Economist Gabriel Zucman has emerged as France’s most polarising figure with his solution —dubbed the ‘Zucman tax’— to solve the country’s debt and deficit crises. He has proposed that that all households earning more than €100 million should pay at least 2 per cent wealth tax.
Zucman expects his proposed wealth tax to generate €20 billion in annual tax revenue. His supporters say his ideas would not just solve the inequality problems but also address the debt and deficit crises.
However, Zucman’s critics maintain that his estimates are far-fetched and gains would be minimal. They also say that the flight of wealthy persons, investments, and businesses could nullify any gains from the tax and render the net impact negative.
To his supporters on the left, Zucman has a rockstar status. And public appears to be supporting his proposal as well — a survey by pollster Ifop on behalf of the Socialist party found 86 per cent people looking at the Zucman tax favourably.
France is in the grips of the worst debt crisis in decades where it touched €3.4 trillion ($4 trillion) as of September 2025. That amounts to around 115 per cent of the GDP. The budget deficit has reached 5.8 per cent of the GDP — nearly double the European Union’s (EU) upper limit of 3 per cent.
Historical Accumulation of debt
| President | Years in Office | Debt at Start (EUR) | Debt at End (EUR) | % of GDP at Start | % of GDP at End | Major Causes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacques Chirac | 1995-2007 | ~€665 billion | ~€1.2 trillion | 55% | 64% | Budget deficits, slow reforms |
| Nicolas Sarkozy | 2007-2012 | ~€1.2 trillion | ~€1.8 trillion | 64% | 90.2% | Financial crisis response, increased spending, limited cuts |
| François Hollande | 2012-2017 | ~€1.8 trillion | ~€2.3 trillion | 90.2% | 98.4% | Slow growth, high unemployment, maintained social spending |
| Emmanuel Macron | 2017-2025 | ~€2.3 trillion | ~€3.4 trillion | 98.4% | 115.6% | Covid-19 crisis, energy subsidies, continued deficits |
Even if you would disagree with him, Zucman’s most impressive to the public could be that France’s crisis is not unsolvable.
“The merit of the Zucman tax is not the tax itself, it is the diagnosis and moving away from the idea that nothing can be done,” Pascal Saint-Amans, a French official who for a decade led the push for global corporate taxation reform at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), told Politico.
Zucman triggers folks from France to US
Zucman’s basic idea is that, at current rates, French billionaires essentially lower tax than most taxpayers. He has maintained that the wealth tax is a must so that billionaires pay their fair share of taxes. And he has not just inspired France’s left-wing leaders.
Zucman’s work has inspired US Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, who ran for Democratic presidential nomination in 2020. Last year, he advised Brazil in its advocacy of a global minimum tax on billionaires during the country’s presidency of G-20.
In France, however, the elite are miffed. LVMH chief Bernard Arnault has warned Zucman’s tax would “destroy the French economy”, other economists have said the proposal would bring in around €5 billion at most, not €20 billion, and legal experts are concerned about the proposal’s constitutionality
Zucman’s tax will not just affect billionaires, but it will also affect entrepreneurs who have developed their businesses and family businesses, Mikael Petitjean, the Chief Economist at Waterloo Asset Management, told Euronews.
“I don’t think we’ll come up with €20 billion. Some estimates are more like €5 billion, but I even wonder. I think it’s even possible that it won’t make any money at all. There is a dynamic of behavioural adjustment that is often very much underestimated by economists, which means that people don’t let themselves be taken advantage of. Strategies are used to try and avoid this tax,” said Petitjean.
French govt may seek compromise
While Socialists have adopted Zucman’s proposals, French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu have opposed the proposal. But there are hints that the government may seek a compromise over political compulsions.
Lecornu lacks a parliamentary majority and needs support from left-wing parties like Socialists to get the budget passed. And that may force him to accept at least in part Zucman’s proposal.
The previous two prime ministers, Francois Bayrou and Michel Barnier, were ousted after the parliament rejected their budget proposals. Both of them had proposed austerity measures to tackle France’s debt crisis.
While the crisis existed previously as well, the financial support during the Covid-19 pandemic, subsidies to cushion the impact of rising energy costs, rising interest payments, and tax cuts and spending increases have added to the deficit and debt in recent years.
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