Shift to the right threatens the economy
North German entrepreneurs warn against right-wing extremism
January 18, 2024, 10:27 p.m
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In recent weeks, several German business representatives have warned that a shift to the right would harm Germany as a business location. They reinforced this position at the UV Nord New Year’s reception in Hamburg.
In view of the strengthening of the AfD and increasing discontent in the country, the northern German economy is calling on politicians to take action. The development not only endangers democracy, but also the business location, said the President of the business associations in Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein, Philipp Murmann, at the UV Nord New Year’s reception in Hamburg.
“Anyone who votes for the AfD is voting for a party that is essentially anti-constitutional and is thus at least indirectly opposing our free basic order. And the signal alone is also damaging to our business location,” said Murmann. Good politics is an essential factor in maintaining this order. “A policy that is represented by personalities who can convey this meaning convincingly,” he said. “Looking at the traffic lights, things aren’t looking so good right now. And that’s a big part of our problem.” Trust in government policy has collapsed more sharply than ever before. “Here, two worlds no longer understand each other. Politics and society are drifting apart,” he warned.
Günther also criticizes traffic lights
Hamburg’s Mayor Peter Tschentscher and Schleswig-Holstein’s Prime Minister Daniel Günther were also concerned about the situation, but at the same time appealed to entrepreneurs to maintain confidence even in times of crisis and to do their part to keep society together. In Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein in particular, the economic prospects are better than in other parts of the country thanks to the combination of renewable energies, innovative industries and global trade connections. Both heads of government emphasized that the good and close cooperation between the governments in Hamburg and Kiel also contributes to this.
Günther emphasized that he would also like “our federal government to get out of its echo chamber and explain a little more.” If Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Economics Minister Robert Habeck, and Finance Minister Christian Lindner alone make an important decision, only to immediately present it as wrong, that does not contribute to trust in government policy. “How can you believe that the population has a feeling that they really know what they want to develop there?”
Tschentscher appeases
Hamburg’s mayor also spoke of a “depressed mood that we currently have in Germany”. That is understandable given the crises. He does not want to protect the Berlin traffic light coalition. “But current complaints are currently mixed with complaints about decades of undesirable developments,” he said, referring to the farmers’ protests. The fact that the protests come from the middle of society should “bring concern to politicians,” said Günther. “Stability is one of the factors why companies invest in our country.” The necessary skilled workers would no longer come “if we don’t radiate cosmopolitanism here in the north.”
Entrepreneurs should also do their part to strengthen the solidarity between politics and citizens. “The fact that our parliaments are no longer so socially mixed is also due to the fact that entrepreneurs are no longer prepared to take political responsibility,” said Günther. Both heads of government assured that they would work together to reduce bureaucracy in order to relieve the burden on the economy. However, this is not easy to make quickly with a decision, said Tschentscher. “Bureaucracy is like a weed that grows into all planning and approval processes.”