Public spending on pensions in France: How to spend public money to weaken potential growth

Public spending on pensions is very high in France compared with other euro-zone countries, mainly as a result of a lower retirement age in France. While there is now a search for public spending that increases potential growth, it is unfortunate to see that this additional public spending in France, with very high public spending on pensions, actually weakens potential growth. This is because: In the medium term, a higher employment rate among 60-64 year olds is associated with a higher overall employment rate; The high level of public spending on pensions either forces a reduction in useful public spending, or leads to a high tax burden with taxes that create distortions that are negative for potential growth (corporate social contributions).