Marine Le Pen described the pension problem as “trivial” compared with administrative spending deemed unnecessary, thereby reigniting the controversy. According to the Retirement Orientation Council, France spent 422 billion euros on pensions in 2025, equal to 24.3% of public spending and 14.1% of GDP, with the system’s 417 billion euros in revenue financed mainly by social contributions. The scheme recorded a 5.1 billion euro deficit, compared with a public deficit of 152.5 billion euros, while civil servant pensions accounted for 69.3 billion euros, or 16% of state expenditure. A senatorial report estimates that reducing support-function costs by 20% at certain public operators could save 540 million euros annually, roughly ten times less than the pension system’s current deficit, which is expected to worsen as the population ages.
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