STERN survey - Three quarters of Germans against higher energy prices
On Monday, farmers demonstrated in Berlin against the abolition of subsidies with tractor convoys. According to the original plans of the traffic light coalition, farmers are to pay the full tax rate on agricultural diesel in future and will no longer be exempt from motor vehicle tax. However, opposition to the federal government's austerity package goes much further.
Three out of four Germans are generally opposed to the government's plans to make energy more expensive. This was the result of a Forsa survey commissioned by stern magazine. To solve the budget crisis, the traffic light coalition had decided, among other things, to increase the C02 price more sharply at the turn of the year. As a result, prices for heating oil, gas, petrol, diesel and electricity are expected to rise. 22% of Germans consider higher energy costs to be justifiable. 75 percent say that the German government should have made up the billions missing through savings that would not place such a heavy burden on citizens. Three percent have no opinion on the matter. Criticism is particularly strong among Germans whose household earns less than 2500 euros net per month. 82 percent of them reject the traffic light plans. Unsurprisingly, households with lower incomes have to spend a larger proportion of their income on energy.
The voters of the governing parties SPD and FDP are also against making energy more expensive: 61% of SPD voters reject the measures, 35% find them justifiable: similarly with the FDP: 62% are against the plans, only 33% in favor. The rejection is even greater among CDU/CSU (82%) and AfD (95%) supporters. Only 59% of Green voters are in favor of making energy more expensive, while only 37% are in favor of a small number of cost-cutting measures.
The data was collected by the market and opinion research institute forsa for RTL Group Germany on December 14 and 15, 2023. Data basis: 1096 respondents. Statistical margin of error: +/- 3 percentage points.
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- The traffic light coalition's plan to increase the C02 price more sharply, as part of their efforts to address the budget crisis, has resulted in expectations of a rise in prices for heating oil, gas, petrol, diesel, and electricity.
- The survey conducted by Forsa on behalf of stern magazine revealed that three out of four Germans are against the government's plan to make energy more expensive, with only 22% finding higher costs justifiable.
- Criticism of these energy price increases is particularly strong among households with a net income of less than 2500 euros per month; 82% of them reject the traffic light coalition's plans.
- The rejection of making energy more expensive is widespread across supporting parties of the Federal Government, with 61% of SPD voters, 62% of FDP voters, and 82% of CDU/CSU voters opposing the measures.
Source: www.stern.de
