Refugees and migration
SPD parliamentary group for “broad compromise” with Union
September 24, 2023, 7:39 p.m
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Chancellor Scholz and his SPD are signaling to the opposition that they want to find a consensus that goes beyond the government on the issue of migration, which should ultimately lead to a reduction in the number of refugees. But an upper limit would be “ineffective,” according to the SPD parliamentary group.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz, his SPD and the FDP are open to working with the Union to reduce the number of refugees arriving in Germany. “The Chancellor is in constant communication with the Union-governed countries and is also open to further discussions on migration issues,” government circles told the “Tagesspiegel”. However, this should be seen “separately from his offer to reduce bureaucratic obstacles and stimulate the economy as part of a ‘Germany Pact’.”
There was also a fundamentally positive reaction from the SPD parliamentary group. “Especially on the sensitive issue of migration, it would be desirable if we, the government parties, could come to a broadly supported compromise with the Union,” said parliamentary managing director Johannes Fechner to the newspaper. However, he warned that the Social Democrats would “not support populist and ineffective demands such as the one for an upper limit.” However, there was already agreement “in the previous government with the CDU and CSU that the list of safe countries of origin needs to be expanded – the Greens are currently putting the brakes on that.”
Like FDP General Secretary Bijan Djir-Sarai, his party colleague Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann also called for a change of course by the environmental party. “The Greens are no longer children either – holding their hands over their eyes and then assuming that everything is pleasantly beautiful is naive, unworldly and only strengthens the agitators in this country,” she told the Tagesspiegel: “That doesn’t make anyone a commune and did not serve any aid organization that is involved in helping refugees.” The defense politician also advocated for a cross-camp consensus: “The government parties must come together with the CDU and CSU and solve the problem – immediately!”