"Being without a budget, given the upcoming elections, would bring us into a period of political and financial uncertainty that we would not know how to handle," he told the media company LCI.
Growing deficits and government debt are plaguing Europe's second-largest economy.
Budget negotiations begin in September, when Lecornu presents the government's proposal to a deeply divided National Assembly.
Presidential elections will be held in April 2027, which further reduces the willingness to compromise.
Lecornu talks about “measures this fall that are difficult but not drastic.”
The next government, whoever it may be, will have no choice but to take drastic measures.
