House of Representatives - Budget expert: Need loans for a special fund
CDU budget expert Christian Goiny has rejected criticism from the State Court of Auditors regarding the black-red plans for a special fund to finance more climate protection. "Of course we want a sound budgetary policy that doesn't get out of hand," he told the daily newspaper "taz" (Monday). "On the other hand, we also see this need for investment, and that is a challenge that we cannot overcome with normal budget funds. That's why we need the loans for a special fund despite the debt brake."
Following the Federal Constitutional Court's ruling on the federal budget, the State Court of Auditors argued that an emergency situation must be justified for the respective financial year and a causal link between the emergency situation and the planned measures must be demonstrated. The Berlin special fund of five billion euros for several financial years does not meet these requirements.
"We have done things differently to the federal level. There, existing reserves were simply relabeled, so to speak, from coronavirus to climate protection," said Goiny. "And the special fund is not part of the budget and is not justified solely by the climate crisis, but also by the war of aggression against Ukraine and its consequences such as inflation and energy price increases and their effects on social justice and social cohesion."
Nevertheless, he considers the decision to have an expert opinion clarify the extent to which the Karlsruhe ruling also affects the Berlin plans to be the right one. "We must analyze the decision of the Federal Constitutional Court in detail, also with regard to the Berlin law," said Goiny, who is the chief budget officer of the CDU parliamentary group in the House of Representatives. "We are sticking to our goal, but of course we want a law that will stand up to judicial review."
In mid-November, the Federal Constitutional Court declared the second supplementary budget for 2021 unconstitutional and null and void due to violations of exceptions to the debt brake. With the budget amendment, the federal government wanted to invest loans in climate protection that were originally intended for coronavirus measures. The ruling has torn a billion euro hole in the federal budget.
"taz" interview
Read also:
- Despite the criticism from the State Court of Auditors regarding the special fund for climate protection, CDU budget expert Christian Goiny argued that loans are necessary due to the need for investment and the challenges that can't be addressed with normal budget funds.
- The state audit office questioned the Berlin special fund of five billion euros, stating that it does not meet the requirements set by the Federal Constitutional Court, which ruled that an emergency situation must be justified.
- In response to the Federal Constitutional Court's ruling, Goiny pointed out that Berlin has taken a different approach, using existing reserves for climate protection instead of relabeling coronavirus funds.
- The special fund in Berlin is not solely justified by the climate crisis, but also by the war of aggression against Ukraine, its consequences, and their impact on social justice and social cohesion.
- The CDU parliamentary group's chief budget officer, Christian Goiny, is advocating for an expert opinion to clarify how the Karlsruhe ruling affects the Berlin plans, as the federal government experienced a billion-euro hole in the budget due to the unconstitutional declaration of a second supplementary budget for 2021 by the Federal Constitutional Court.
Source: www.stern.de
