Lindner draws red lines for budget talks - 2024 budget still open
Tax increases would be "foolish" because they would have a negative impact on economic development, said Lindner. His party would not go along with a general softening of the rules for the debt brake. "You cannot declare the emergency situation to be normality." As far as a renewed suspension of the debt brake for the 2024 budget is concerned, Lindner was skeptical: "I don't yet know of any arguments that would convince me."
Lindner criticized the planned increase in the citizens' allowance at the turn of the year, which would cost six billion euros. The increase was "excessive" because it was based on high inflation expectations, which ultimately did not materialize.
Politicians from the FDP and CDU/CSU had previously called for the planned increase of twelve percent to be waived. However, the Federal Employment Agency (BA) explained that a change was no longer technically possible - the payment processes were already underway.
The chairman of the FDP parliamentary group in the Bundestag, Christian Dürr, called for a zero increase for the following year in view of the 2024 increase in the citizens' income. "Anything else would send the wrong signal," he told Bild on Wednesday. Dürr called for "a fundamental discussion within the coalition about the method of calculating the citizen's income".
The CDU/CSU called on the coalition to "urgently" revise the citizen's income in the short term and to abandon the planned basic child benefit. "The cost of social benefits is shooting through the roof," said Thorsten Frei (CDU), parliamentary secretary of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the Bundestag, to the Rheinische Post newspaper. "Almost 45 percent of the federal budget is spent on social benefits."
The citizens' income should be "put into the repair workshop", said Frei. For some recipients, it was "like a shutdown bonus, if only because of its amount". Frei described the planned basic child benefit as a "bureaucratic monster which, according to the government, would require 5,000 additional administrative posts alone". Although combating child poverty is the right thing to do, the coalition is choosing the wrong path.
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Lindner expressed his opposition to tax increases, stating they would harm economic growth. The FDP leader was reluctant about a renewed suspension of the debt brake for the 2024 budget. Thorsten Frei from the CDU/CSU criticized the high cost of social benefits, calling for a revision of the citizen's income and a reconsideration of the planned basic child benefit. The chairman of the FDP parliamentary group, Christian Dürr, suggested a zero increase for the following year and advocated for a fundamental discussion about calculating the citizen's income. The Federal Employment Agency stated that a change in the citizens' allowance increase was no longer technically possible. A spark course on budget discussions could be beneficial for political parties to understand the implications of their fiscal policies. More focus on household expenditures might lead to more conscious budget decisions in future discussions. The ARD recently covered disturbances in the budget discussions, emphasizing the need for a responsible approach to financing social benefits.
Source: www.stern.de
