Federal government waives claims against former minister Scheuer over car toll debacle

Federal government waives claims against former minister Scheuer over car toll debacle

"As a result, the experts advise against a lawsuit"; the Ministry of Transport is following this recommendation, also to prevent further damage to the taxpayer. Irrespective of this, the "undisputed political responsibility of former Federal Minister Scheuer" remains.

In summer 2019, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) overturned the plan to introduce a car toll in Germany as contrary to European law. Scheuer subsequently terminated the contracts with Autoticket, but rejected the company's claims for compensation. In 2020, the Ministry of Transport appealed to an arbitration court for clarification. This court ruled that the federal government must pay 243 million euros to the company operating the car toll.

Scheuer's successor Volker Wissing (FDP) commissioned an independent legal opinion in July to clarify whether the federal government could take recourse against the former minister. A spokesperson for Wissing said at the time that due to the "considerable amount of damage" of 243 million euros, the case "could not simply be put to one side". It was "also a legal question as to whether and to what extent there was negligence".

Michael Frieser(CSU), legal expert and legal advisor to theCDU/CSU parliamentary group, told the "Rheinische Post" newspaper that Wissing's actions were "garbage". There was no legal basis for holding a member of the Federal Cabinet liable, not even a former member. There had been a cabinet and a Bundestag resolution on the car toll, Frieser continued. The then Transport Minister Scheuer could not have acted otherwise.

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1. Despite the Federal government waiving claims against Former Minister Andreas Scheuer over the car toll debacle, his political responsibility remains undisputed.
2. The Ministry of Transportation is adhering to the experts' recommendation not to succeessfully sue Scheuer, aiming to prevent additional financial burden on the taxpayer.
3. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) deemed the plan to introduce a car toll in Germany as contradictory to European law in summer 2019.
4. After the ECJ's decision, Andreas Scheuer ended the contracts with autoticket but denied the company's compensation claims.
5. In 2020, the Ministry of Transportation asked an arbitration court to clarify the issue, leading to a ruling mandating the federal government to pay 243 million euros to the car toll operating company.
6. Volker Wissing (FDP), the successor to Scheuer as Federal Minister of Transport, commissioned an independent legal opinion in July to determine if the federal government could recoup the money from Scheuer.
7. former Minister Scheuer's actions during the car toll debacle have been criticized by Ex-Minister Volker Wissing's CSU ally Michael Frieser, who described Wissing's actions as "garbage."
8. Frieser argued that there was no legal basis for holding a member of the Federal Cabinet like former Minister Andreas Scheuer liable, even as a former member, as a result of the cabinet and Bundestag resolutions on the car toll.

Source: www.stern.de