Federal government considers waiver of citizens' income increase unfeasible
Government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit made it clear "that there are no plans within the federal government to change the legal situation". The government could not simply postpone or cancel the increase. "It would be against the law to do so," said Hebestreit - and emphasized that the federal government "abides by the law".
The coalition party FDP and the opposition CDU/CSU had previously called for the planned increase in social benefits at the turn of the year to be canceled. They justified this on the one hand with the savings constraints in the 2024 budget and on the other hand with the fact that the increase in rates by twelve percent was based on an inflation expectation, which, however, did not occur at the forecast level.
The basis for calculating the increase in the citizen's allowance is laid down by law. The Federal Ministry of Social Affairs pointed out that it was not the general inflation rate that played a role here, but a "price index relevant to regular needs". Food, for example, for which the inflation rate is above average, is weighted particularly heavily.
In recent months, the price increase in this rule-based index has been three to four percentage points higher than the general price increase in some cases, said the ministry spokesperson. "Of course, this also has an impact on the amount of the update," he added.
Read also:
- Despite the calls from parties like FDP and the CDU/CSU for the cancellation of the citizen's income increase at the turn of the year, Government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit from the federal government stated that it's not realizable and they won't renounce the law.
- Steffen Hebestreit, speaking on behalf of the federal government, made it clear that there are no plans to alter the current legal situation regarding the citizen's income increase, which was intended from the turn of the year.
- While the FDP and the CDU/CSU suggested renouncing the planned increase in social benefits due to savings constraints in the 2024 budget and a lower-than-expected inflation rate, Hebestreit emphasized that the federal government holds firm to the rule of law.
- As the increase in citizens' income is based on a price index relevant to essential needs, which exceeds the general inflation rate in some cases, as indicated by the Federal Ministry of Social Affairs, any renunciation of the increase would be challenging for the federal government, as stated by Hebestreit.
- With Steffen Hebestreit adamant that the federal government will not waver on the citizen's income increase at the turn of the year, the question of how they will tackle the sensitive issue of social benefits in the face of budget constraints remains unanswered.
Source: www.stern.de
