Recent widespread protests in France and Italy reflect growing public dissatisfaction over the cost of living, public services, and economic insecurity, and the perception that their governments are failing to address the problems. Many younger and working-class citizens worry about their long-term financial security and career opportunities.
At the same time, the national debts of France and Italy are staggering. France’s government debt is approximately 119% of gross domestic product (GDP), while Italy’s is approximately 140%. GDP represents the total market value of final goods and services produced within a country for one year. A debt-to-GDP ratio exceeding 100% means that a government’s outstanding debt exceeds the value of its country’s annual economic output.
These two countries are not exceptions in the European Union (EU). Five EU countries have government debt exceeding 100% of GDP: Greece, Italy, France, Belgium, and Spain. At the opposite extreme, Estonia, Denmark, Luxembourg, and Bulgaria have particularly low government debt. The EU-wide debt-to-GDP ratio is approximately 83%, calculated by dividing the combined government debt of all 27 member countries by their combined GDP. U.S. government debt is approximately 126% of GDP. 1
Government debt exceeding 100% of GDP does not mean a country is bankrupt. However, it leaves governments with fewer financial options, especially as interest payments and other expenses rise.
Food insecurity is another troubling problem. In 2024, 13.7% of American households—approximately one in seven—experienced food insecurity. These households contained nearly 50 million people. 2 Food insecurity refers to limited or uncertain access to sufficient food because of inadequate financial resources.
Food insecurity is also a serious problem in Europe. However, differences in how the United States and European countries measure food insecurity make direct comparisons difficult. 3
Where Does the Money to Fix These Problems Come From?
The protesters in France and Italy demand changes that could require substantial additional public spending. However, both countries already carry exceptionally high government debt, limiting their ability to finance new programs without increasing taxes, reducing other expenditures, or adding to their debt.
Many other EU countries and the United States face similar pressures. The press often focuses on citizens’ anger and the resulting clashes, but the underlying economic realities receive far less attention. France and Italy must balance public demands for improved services and economic security against the need to control deficits and comply with EU fiscal rules.
In his international bestseller, Capital in the Twenty-First Century, economist Thomas Piketty argues that wealth tends to become increasingly concentrated when returns on capital exceed economic growth. The decades following World War II, particularly 1945–1975, were an important exception in the United States and Western Europe. Strong economic growth, progressive taxation, expanding educational opportunities, and increased productivity helped create a substantial middle class. During this period, many Americans came to believe that a large and prosperous middle class would remain a permanent feature of American society. 4
Piketty’s proposed solution includes a progressive global tax on wealth. However, implementing such a tax would be extremely difficult. Wealthy individuals can move assets or establish residence in jurisdictions with more favorable tax treatment, and reaching an international agreement on progressive wealth taxation would present enormous political and practical challenges.
Governments cannot indefinitely solve economic problems through additional spending and borrowing. Ultimately, improving living standards requires producing more goods and services efficiently, encouraging investment, and growing the economy. Although governments can help create the conditions for prosperity through education, infrastructure, research, and effective institutions, the private sector plays a central role in producing goods and services, creating jobs, and generating economic activity.
A growing economy generally produces additional tax revenues, potentially helping governments finance public services and manage their debts. However, economic growth in many developed countries has been insufficient to resolve mounting debt, rising public expenditures, and concerns about economic security.
People want better public services, greater financial security, and higher living standards. But how can governments deliver these improvements when they are already deeply in debt? Economic growth will help, but it won’t solve every problem. Governments will still have to make difficult decisions about taxes, spending, and debt.
Unless political leaders find workable solutions, will large-scale protests and social unrest continue to grow throughout the world?
1 Eurostat, Government Debt Statistics, October 21, 2026; International Monetary Fund, Fiscal Monitor, 2026. Government debt figures are rounded and may reflect different reporting periods.
2 U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Household Food Security in the United States in 2024, December 2025; Food Security in the U.S.—Key Statistics & Graphics, updated March 30, 2026.
3 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Prevalence of Moderate or Severe Food Insecurity in the Population (%), World Bank World Development Indicators.
4 Thomas Piketty, Capital in the Twenty-First Century (Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2014).