CONSTITUTION · BUDGET · ACCOUNTABILITY
Article 26: why MPs cannot be jailed for a budget vote
The solution is not to threaten legislators over votes, but to make an unconstitutional budget legally inadmissible.
Document status : Citizen working prototype requiring expert review: these drafts are not opinions of the Conseil d’État, the Constitutional Council or any public institution.
Constitutional protection
Article 26 protects Members of Parliament from proceedings based on opinions or votes cast in the exercise of parliamentary functions.
Consequence
therefore does not create an offence of “voting for a deficit budget.”
Proper lock
Non-compliant budgets should be stopped through certification, inadmissibility and mandatory constitutional review before the vote can create an unconstitutional outcome.
Separate conduct
Corruption, falsification or destruction of records are separate acts governed by their own legal regimes; they are not the parliamentary vote itself.
Working documents and data
Legal and institutional sources
French Constitution, Article 34
French fiscal council — official missions
Organic Budget Act, Article 61