THE ‘NEW’ FRANCE: RECORD DEBT, RISING TENSIONS, MASS IMMIGRATION AND A GOVERNMENT PAINTED INTO A CORNER. Is what’s happening in France an immigration problem? Yes and no. France has record debt, some of the highest taxes in the developed world, high welfare and a government spending around €1.7 trillion a year while bringing in only €1.5 trillion. In 2025, it paid around €65 billion just in interest on its debt. That’s €65 billion gone before a single extra hospital bed or teacher can be paid for. And the bill is only going to get bigger. So what happens when you’ve taxed people to the hilt, services are under pressure and borrowing more becomes increasingly expensive? You cut spending or you tax people even more. Either way, ordinary people lose. Now throw mass immigration, failed integration and rising tensions into the mix. Do you see the problem? People are fighting over immigration, left versus right, native versus immigrant, while France’s finances are getting worse and the government is running out of room to manoeuvre. And this is where it gets interesting. Because when people are angry, struggling to pay bills and watching their standard of living fall, they look for someone to blame. The immigrant. The left. The right. Anyone but the people making the decisions. And that’s the real danger. Immigration is a problem. But it’s not the only problem. And if we only argue about immigration, we miss the bigger picture. It’s not just France though…..is it? Look at the debt. Look at the division. Look at the direction we’re all heading. While everyone is looking at each other, very few, nowhere near enough, are looking up.