New authority, less bureaucracy
Paus defends 5,000 new positions for basic child welfare
March 30, 2024, 10:50 a.m
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Basic child security is the traffic light’s big social policy project. The Greens in particular are very keen on this, but there are problems with the implementation. The latest obstacle is Family Minister Paus’s plans to set up a new authority for this purpose. Instead of more, the result should be less bureaucracy.
Federal Family Minister Lisa Paus from the Greens believes it is understandable and right to create a new 5,000-strong authority in the vicinity of her ministry because of the planned basic child welfare. “The additional staff means a reduction in bureaucracy for the citizens. At the moment they are carrying the burden of bureaucracy and have to run from Pontius to Pilatus,” she told the “Rheinische Post” and the “General-Anzeiger”.
Paus explains: “With the 5,000 positions, we want to move from the citizens’ obligation to collect to the state’s obligation to provide them. We will have significantly more applications than before: Basic child support, if it reaches everyone who needs financial support, can be up to 5, Reach 6 million children and young people.” The traffic light government wants to combat child poverty more effectively with the project.
From 2025 onwards, the basic child security scheme is intended to bundle previous benefits such as child benefit, benefits from citizen’s benefit for children or the child allowance. Basic child welfare is the Greens’ prestige social policy project, but is controversial in the federal government. Finance Minister Christian Lindner and Family Minister Paus had struggled for months to finance the service. Paus wanted significantly more money for the project, but was unable to get his way.
Schedule has long since failed
The federal cabinet passed the draft law in September with the aim of ensuring that basic child protection comes into force on January 1, 2025. The law was actually supposed to be passed by the Federal Council in February. When concerns arose from the state chamber and also the Federal Employment Agency, the federal government announced in December that it would review the schedule. You criticized too much bureaucracy.
Paus was nevertheless optimistic that basic child support would come. “I notice that there are constructive discussions about this in parliament. I am very confident that we will ultimately achieve basic child security.”