The Left - Who pays for the handling of a fraction?
On December 6, the Left Party parliamentary group in the Bundestag will be history. As of this date, it has the status of a "parliamentary group in liquidation". The last time a parliamentary group was wound up during a parliamentary term was in 1961 with the German Party.
The 108 staff members of the parliamentary group are now receiving their notices of termination. Salaries will continue to be paid until the end of the notice period. To this end, the liquidators are drawing on the parliamentary group's reserves, which it has built up over the years. Each parliamentary group in the Bundestag is entitled to a monthly basic amount. Since the 2023 financial year, Die Linke has received allocations amounting to €540,203 (including opposition surcharge). In addition, each parliamentary group member receives 10,787 euros.
And if the money is not enough?
The parliamentary group uses this money to finance its running costs. It can keep the rest. Those who do reasonably well usually keep some left over. The Left Party will have to use these reserves to pay for everything from December 6, the social plan and salaries until the redundancies take effect. This is likely to amount to several million euros in total. If the money is not enough, there is the threat of bankruptcy in addition to liquidation.
How expensive the liquidation will be overall and how long it will take also depends on whether employees take legal action against their dismissal and incur legal costs. After the FDP failed to re-enter the Bundestag in 2013, the liquidation formally took more than six years.
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The upcoming liquidation of The Left's parliamentary group in the Bundestag raises questions about the group's financial reserves, as they will be responsible for covering costs like social plans and salaries until the redundancies take effect. With estimated costs in the millions, there's a possibility of insufficient funds, potentially leading to bankruptcy aside from the liquidation process.
Additionally, the Bundestag's monthly basic amount allocated to each parliamentary group, including The Left, is utilized for running costs, with excess funds often retained. In 2023, Die Linke received €540,203, which includes an opposition surcharge, plus an additional €10,787 for each member.
Furthermore, the handling of headlines related to this situation is crucial. The opposition's topping message that highlights The Left's liquidation and potential financial struggles will be one of the key headlines that Germans will be reading in their newspapers and news websites.
Source: www.stern.de
