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FDP parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr
Photo: Michael Kappeler / dpa
In view of record inflation and the impending energy emergency, the federal government must prepare for further relief packages.
Within the traffic light coalition, however, there are very different ideas about how these could be financed.
FDP parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr has clearly contradicted the demand by SPD chairwoman Saskia Esken for a further suspension of the debt brake.
»The demand for a renewed suspension of the debt brake does not get any better if you keep repeating it.
If we don't comply with the debt brake in 2023, we would make the state itself the inflation driver," Dürr told the dpa news agency.
"By complying with the debt brake, on the other hand, we are slowing down inflation, preventing further price increases and, by the way, also complying with our constitution."
However, further relief would have to be initiated, said Dürr.
»Instead of the left pocket, we have to structurally relieve the right pocket.
We should aim to reduce the cold progression and thus relieve the burden directly and permanently," he said.
Esken said on Sunday in the ZDF summer interview that, given the burden on the population from rising prices, she does not think it is feasible to return to the debt brake in the coming year.
"I think we need to suspend the debt brake again," she said.
In order to be able to finance this necessary financial relief for people with middle and low incomes, a stronger contribution from the wealthy will certainly be necessary.
Income tax relief, on the other hand, is “not a way to broadly relieve the population, we have to find other ways”.
After three exceptional years, the FDP is demanding a return to the debt brake in 2023.
The government partners had also recorded this in their coalition agreement.
Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) recently presented a budget draft for 2023, which is based on the rules of the debt brake, i.e. only provides for low net borrowing.
The debt brake laid down in the Basic Law states that the federal government may normally borrow up to a maximum of 0.35 percent of gross domestic product.
In addition, deviations are permitted to a limited extent "in the event of an economic development that deviates from the normal situation".
For the years 2020 to 2022, the Bundestag saw such an emergency and decided to exempt it from the debt brake. This was justified with the corona pandemic, this year also with the war against Ukraine.
mmq/dpa