French MP member of the LIOT group and Rapporteur General of the Budget Charles de Courson (L) shakes hands with French Minister for Budget and Public Accounts Laurent Saint-Martin (R) next to French Minister for the Economy, Finance and Industry Antoine Armand (C) during a session to vote on the special budget draft law at the National Assembly in Paris on December 16, 2024. In the absence of a budget for 2025, the deputies will examine on December 16, 2024 a special bill, intended to guarantee the continuity of the State, by allowing taxes to be raised, credits to be spent on the basis of the previous budget, and authorizing the State and Social Security to borrow. (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP) (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT/AFP via Getty Images)