Aid for slum communities: SPD calls on CDU to join in debt relief
Climate municipalities should, according to the SPD, be relieved of their crushing old debts as quickly as possible. The Social Democrats appeal to the Union to pave the way for a necessary constitutional amendment. The affected municipalities should be comprehensively helped still in this legislative period - that is, before autumn 2025, as stated in a resolution paper of the SPD presidency.
The SPD supports plans that the Ministry of Finance has already submitted based on the coalition agreement some time ago. "Moreover, we want to ensure that there is consideration for the situation of eastern German municipalities, which are also challenged by unpaid old debts," it says in the paper.
The Ministry of Finance has been in talks with the states and the Union faction in the Bundestag for some time. The proposal is that the federal government and the states should each take half of the excessive liquidity credits of the municipalities. However, a change to the Basic Law would be necessary for this, which cannot be decided without the consent of the Union.
"We expect the willingness to talk and find solutions from all federal states and all democratic factions in the German Bundestag," the SPD explained. The challenge is too great for political games.
The Social Democrats are advocating for a constitutional amendment to facilitate the relief of climate municipalities from their old debts, as stated in the resolution paper. Without this amendment, the proposed division of excessive liquidity credits between the federal government and the states necessitated by the Ministry of Finance may not be possible.
