Parliament - Repayment of coronavirus loans is deferred in Thuringia
Thuringia is taking more time than previously planned to repay the debt taken on during the coronavirus pandemic. The state parliament decided on Wednesday to repay the loans within 15 years. Previously, 8 years were planned for this. The state parliament's decision gives the state more financial leeway, as the annual repayment amounts will be lower. Compared to other federal states, this is still quite a short repayment period, said Olaf Müller, budget politician for the Greens.
According to the Ministry of Finance, the repayment extension concerns debts of the Free State amounting to around 1.2 billion euros. Of this money, around 700 million euros had flowed into the state's special coronavirus fund. The remaining loans were used to cover revenue shortfalls as a result of the pandemic.
Representatives of the AfD and FDP criticized the extension of the repayment period. In this way, the red-red-green party would avoid making real savings in the 2024 budget, said FDP group spokesperson Thomas Kemmerich. "They are cheating their way around a real decision." The extension of the repayment period is part of a budget compromise between the Red-Red-Greens and the CDU. The Left, SPD and Greens do not have their own majority in parliament.
The state parliament also decided to dissolve the coronavirus special fund ahead of schedule, which had recently also been used to mitigate the consequences of the energy crisis. It will now expire at the end of 2024 and not at the end of 2025 as originally planned. With the end of the pandemic, there is no longer any reason to continue the special fund, it was explained.
Thuringia's State Secretary of Finance Hartmut Schubert said that it was nevertheless right that the special fund would continue to exist for another year. He expects that around 250 million euros will remain after its liquidation. The money would then flow back into the state budget.
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Source: www.stern.de
