Traffic light frustration speech causes resentment
SPD and FDP attack Habeck
03/22/2023, 4:19 p.m
Because his climate projects are met with resistance, Habeck makes serious accusations against the traffic light partners. However, his frustration speech is not well received. While SPD boss Klingbeil would like to fight the dispute internally, the general secretaries of the FDP and the Social Democrats countered with sharp words.
The general secretaries of the SPD and FDP have rejected the criticism of the Green Economics Minister Robert Habeck on the work of the coalition partners. “Mr Habeck’s perception that the Greens are responsible for progress in the traffic light coalition and that the other parties would prevent it does not correspond to reality,” said FDP General Secretary Bijan Djir-Sarai to the “Spiegel”. SPD General Secretary Kevin Kühnert confirmed that Habeck was currently under pressure. “But I think you shouldn’t deal with the pressure in such a way that you just grab in all directions because of it,” he told the ARD capital studio.
At the start of the Greens parliamentary group retreat on Tuesday, Habeck said it could not be “that in a progressive coalition only one coalition partner is responsible for progress and the others for preventing progress”. The background is, among other things, the dispute over the gradual replacement of old gas and oil heating systems.
“I can’t see that the Greens are accelerating progress, they’re blocking it in many places – for example in the expansion of infrastructure or a technology-neutral approach to climate protection policy,” said Djir-Sarai, referring to the controversial end of new cars with combustion engines 2035
SPD boss Lars Klingbeil called on the traffic light partners to stop the internal dispute. “The public dispute in the coalition must stop,” said Klingbeil of the “Rheinische Post”. “The public dispute of the last few days, the mutual reproach, that’s not what we need right now to move the country forward.” He was also reacting to Habeck’s statements on ARD that necessary decisions in the government were being delayed. “These public disputes must stop now,” warned Klingbeil.
“They want to slander me”
Habeck had said that some in the government “relapsed into old comfort”. He was alarmed, for example, on the question of converting the gas and oil heating systems, whether there was any willingness in the government to reach an agreement at all. There was a targeted indiscretion about the joint draft law given by the Ministry of Economics and Building.”A government that gambles away trust has of course lost its biggest pound.”The Green Vice-Chancellor accused the coalition partners of “blackening him out”.Habeck also had the SPD and FDP at the Green retreat in Weimar accused of acting as a brake.
Habeck’s self-description also caused frowns in SPD faction leader Dirk Wiese. “Robert Habeck’s statements were certainly more aimed at his own people in the environment of the closed meeting of the Greens parliamentary group,” said Wiese, according to “Spiegel” and indirectly accused Habeck of wanting to make a name for himself within his own party. “In the background, the conflict with Annalena Baerbock about the next top candidate may also play a role.” Regarding the end of oil and gas heating proposed by Habeck, Wiese said: The Greens “often unfortunately only have the higher earners in the big cities in mind”.
Hebestreit: Ampel works constructively
Meanwhile, Chancellor Olaf Scholz was particularly relaxed. His spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said: “I see the cooperation in the traffic light as constructive and good. There are always points that are discussed and then negotiated.” But there are “of course” conflicting goals in an alliance of three parties that need to be clarified. Scholz is “in conversation with everyone and moves it in the right direction”.
The leaders of the SPD, Greens and FDP want to meet on Sunday evening to talk about the issues. In addition to drawing up the budget, the coalition committee should also deal with the planned ban on the installation of new oil and gas heating systems from 2024, the planned phasing out of combustion engines, the acceleration of planning and an immediate climate protection program for the transport sector.