Only ten requests per month
Group specifications in the Bundestag outrage the Left and BSW
February 1, 2024, 7:49 a.m
The Left and the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance want to be recognized as groups in the Bundestag. Their rights would be similar to those of factions, but significantly curtailed. This causes discontent among those affected.
Politicians from the Left and the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) have criticized the planned guidelines for their new groups in the Bundestag. “The coalition wants to drastically restrict the control rights of the opposition, especially with regard to the right to ask questions in parliament,” said Left Party leader Janine Wissler of the “Rheinische Post”.
BSW MP Sevim Dağdelen made a similar statement: “A restriction on the essential right to critically question and control government actions threatens to further damage the democratic culture in our country,” she told the newspaper. Almost two months after the dissolution of the left-wing faction, the Bundestag could recognize the two now separate groups of 38 MPs on Friday. There are 28 parliamentarians in the new Left group and 10 in the BSW group.
Groups have fewer rights in parliament than parliamentary groups and also receive less government funding. The majority of Parliament determines the exact conditions by resolution. The number of small and large parliamentary questions to the government should be limited to ten per group per month.
Ampel rejects the criticism
Small and large requests bring to light information that the government and authorities would prefer to keep under wraps, said Wissler. “We have repeatedly put our finger in the wound here. The traffic lights are now obviously trying to prevent us from doing that.” Representatives of the traffic light coalition rejected the criticism. “The regulations found go too far for the Union faction, and probably not far enough for the groups themselves; in my opinion, this also illustrates that the government factions represent a very balanced proposal,” said the parliamentary manager of the Greens, Irene Mihalic, to the “Rheinische Post”.
The FDP politician Torsten Herbst emphasized that both groups would of course have fewer rights than a parliamentary group, “but significantly more than non-attached MPs.” The coalition factions were based on previous group formations in the Bundestag. The Left dissolved its parliamentary group at the beginning of December after ten MPs led by former group leader Sahra Wagenknecht resigned from the party.