“That would only be fair”
Lindner offers farmers a reduction in bureaucracy
January 13, 2024, 4:43 a.m
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Christian Lindner cannot be dissuaded from the subsidy cut for agricultural diesel. However, the finance minister believes that farmers can be relieved elsewhere. By cutting public funds, bureaucratic requirements could at least shrink.
Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner has promised an increased reduction in bureaucratic burdens for farmers in Germany. “The current discussions about agriculture are not just about public money and subsidies. There is also growing frustration among farmers about more and more regulations and other interventions in their operations,” Lindner told the “Rheinische Post”.
“That’s why we have to look at how economic success can be improved overall through less regulation,” said the FDP chairman before his appearance at the central farmers’ demonstration next Monday in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. “If subsidies are reduced, then expensive bureaucracy should also be gradually reduced. That would only be fair,” said Lindner.
For weeks, farmers have been resisting cuts in their area that are intended to plug gaps in the 2024 budget. The traffic light tips had recently already partially met them. The subsidies for agricultural diesel should not be eliminated in one fell swoop in the short term, but gradually over three years. The traffic light has already cashed in on the originally planned abolition of vehicle tax exemptions in agriculture.
In the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung” Lindner made it clear that he wanted to stick to the planned abolition of agricultural diesel subsidies despite the farmers’ ongoing protests. “Parliament has the final say on the budget. But everyone will have to do their part to normalize state finances,” Lindner told the newspaper.
“The agricultural sector receives subsidies of a good nine billion euros annually from Brussels and Berlin,” the finance minister continued. “Less than three hundred million will now be lost in 2025. So we’re talking about around three percent.” The federal government has carefully looked at the effects of the proposal and therefore made corrections, said Lindner. “The green license plate remains, the subsidy for agricultural diesel is only gradually expiring. By reducing subsidies, we are not closing budget holes, but rather financing new relief. The electricity tax for the entire manufacturing industry is being reduced. An old subsidy is expiring, a new relief will be introduced.”