Money for the Bundeswehr and education
Lindner on the household: “Other things are less important”
May 17, 2024, 7:33 a.m
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Finance Minister Lindner sees his austerity demands on the ministries confirmed by the current tax estimate. According to his understanding, all areas except education and defense must make savings. Then it will work with the 2025 budget. Coalition partner SPD objects.
Despite the tax estimate being revised significantly downwards, Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner is confident that the 2025 federal budget can be passed by the cabinet in July. “However, there is still a lot of work to be done before then,” said the FDP leader on ZDF on Thursday evening. He assured that the new forecast, according to which the federal, state and local governments will collect significantly less taxes next year than expected, does not come as a surprise. “That was to be expected in this magnitude. And that is also what was planned.”
Lindner reiterated that the priorities were clear. Germany must do more for “hard security”, get the economy going again and invest in education and technology. “That means: Other things are less important.” It is of central importance to limit the increase in social spending and to readjust international politics. Lindner pointed out that Chancellor Olaf Scholz had stood by his side at the beginning of the week and called on the departments to save money. “That’s why I have no doubt that we will decide on the budget together in the right way.”
SPD leader Lars Klingbeil confirmed that the pension cuts proposed by the FDP were out of the question for his party. “Anyone who continues to believe that we can shoulder the necessary investments in our economy, in jobs or the Bundeswehr by cutting pensions for citizens should take up the calculator again,” Klingbeil told the German Press Agency. “This is not only politically wrong, but also mathematically impossible.”
The tax estimators came to the conclusion on Thursday that the federal, state and local governments will receive 995.2 billion euros in the coming year – 21.9 billion euros less than expected in the fall. Lindner then again criticized the “exorbitant” spending requests from the cabinet and emphasized that there would be no financial leeway in the foreseeable future. His party recently called for the abolition of the zero-deduction pension at the age of 63 after 45 years of employment in order to save money.
Klingbeil doesn’t just want to cut back
Klingbeil emphasized that the tax estimate once again made it clear how great the challenges are for preparing the federal budget. Everyone must be prepared to approach each other – and the SPD is too. But his party wants to make the country economically strong and modernize it without cutting pensions or saving on security. “It’s about what is necessary for our country now. I’m sure the Chancellor will clarify this with the Economics and Finance Minister,” said Klingbeil.
Klingbeil expressed the expectation “that now we won’t just work with Excel tables and cut things out, but that the focus will always be on: How can we keep this country strong?” In view of the challenges created by the war in Ukraine, he expressly supported the demands of the SPD ministers Boris Pistorius (defense), Nancy Faeser (interior affairs) and Svenja Schulze (development). Austerity measures should “not come at the expense of our security or the security of Ukrainians,” emphasized Klingbeil. That’s why it’s just right that Pistorius “is now demanding significantly more money for the Bundeswehr. And he has my full backing.”
Klingbeil did not say how he felt about the Defense Minister’s proposal to exclude security concerns from the debt brake. “How the government does this and what options there are must now be discussed within the cabinet,” he simply said. However, Klingbeil emphasized that there should be no delays in drawing up the budget. “There needs to be a budget that goes through cabinet before the summer.” The decision is planned for the beginning of July.