Lindner lifts budget freeze with immediate effect
In November, the Federal Constitutional Court cancels a special fund worth billions for climate and transformation projects. Finance Minister Lindner then pulls the emergency brake. Three weeks later, the reins are loosened again - halfway.
The FDP-led Federal Ministry of Finance has lifted the budget freeze imposed a good three weeks ago with immediate effect. This is according to a letter from State Secretary of Finance Steffen Saebisch to the other government ministries, which the news agency Reuters was able to view in the evening.
Interim agreements would continue to apply. Accordingly, agreed savings are to be implemented, according to the email dated December 14. "Irrespective of this, the Federal Ministry of Finance recommends using commitment appropriations as sparingly as possible in view of the overall budgetary situation and the coming financial years."
The budget freeze was a reaction by the traffic light government to the far-reaching ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court in mid-November. Initially, it only applied to the KTF climate fund, but was then extended to almost the entire budget. This put a stop to so-called commitment appropriations in the current financial year, i.e. permission to incur future expenditure. Existing liabilities remained exempt from this.
The Constitutional Court had removed 60 billion euros from the federal government's KTF because the transfer of unused coronavirus loans to it was unconstitutional. The Ampel therefore lacks the money. On Friday, the Bundestag and Bundesrat are to decide on the consequences for the 2023 budget. A supplementary budget will remove 60 billion euros from the KTF reserve. New loans totaling 44.8 billion euros will have to be taken out for other special government funds, in particular the WSF energy crisis fund. To achieve this, the debt brake enshrined in the Basic Law must be suspended once again and for the fourth year in a row.
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Following the budget freeze announcement due to the Federal Constitutional Court's ruling, Finance Minister Lindner has now implemented savings measures. The immediate effect of the budget freeze lift allows for the continued implementation of agreed savings measures, as advised by the Federal Ministry of Finance.
Source: www.ntv.de
