AlHijjah 20, 1432, Nov 16, 2011, SPA -- The lower house of France's parliament on Wednesday approved the 2012 budget, which Prime Minister Francois Fillon had presented as one of the toughest since World War II, dpa reported. The budget bill cleared the National Assembly, with 315 votes in favour and 198 votes against. In order to become law, it has to be approved by the Senate, which is controlled by the opposition Socialists. The Socialists have described the proposed budget, which includes over 12 billion euros (16 billion dollars) in tax increases and spending cuts, as "unjust" and "obsolete. " President Nicolas Sarkozy's conservative government has defended the austerity measures as necessary to cut France's budget deficit and safeguard the country's AAA credit rating.
