Germany will vote in two weeks, “Hard but fair” is the stage for the election campaign against the backdrop of the housing shortage in large cities.
The “Hart aber Fair” group will speak on Monday evening about rising rents and housing shortages in Germany. Because she does this during election campaigns, fronts quickly open up in the debate. The chairman of the Junge Union, Tilman Kuban, positions himself and his party clearly: “The issue of having an apartment or a house is an issue that moves many people and of course it moves us too. And that's why I say that in the end, especially in the big cities, we have to ensure that we create more living space. That we are building more. That we are expanding attic floors, for example, to provide more living space there. And at the same time ensure that we better connect rural areas, where 1.2 million apartments are vacant. That is the policy we stand for. "
The deputy chairman of the Greens, Ricarda Lang, is convinced: "Apartment is the home of a lot of people and in Germany there are a lot of people in danger of losing this home." People from the middle of society who would have to invest up to 50 percent of their income in rent.
"These people have been let down by the grand coalition in recent years," accuses Lang.
Germany votes: “Hard but fair” debates between two camps on the subject of housing
The fact that presenter Frank Plasberg subsequently announces the publicist Rainer Hank as the “Godfather of the market economy, Last Man Standing” makes him laugh. In Hank's opinion, Ricarda Lang is only right insofar as rents are a sensitive issue. “Living is a basic need is completely right. But the basic need cannot be met for the same price everywhere, ”says Hank. The analysis is simple: people are moving to the cities, living space is limited there, so the price is rising.
As a way out, says Hank, only two ways are conceivable: “The socialist, not to say the social-democratic variant is: We intervene in the price mechanism.
Rent index, rent cover, expropriation.
That is classically social democratic to socialist. ”That calls the social democrat Hubertus Heil onto the scene:“ Well, well, well. Now be a little careful. ”“ Or else, ”continues Hank, unimpressed,“ we'll do it in a market economy then we do as Mr Kuban said.
Then we expand the offer and build.
Build, build, build.
Then the speculators have no chance and there will be affordable apartments again. "
Election campaign in the final spurt: Minister of Social Affairs Heil discusses with everyone except JU boss Kuban
Federal Labor and Social Affairs Minister Hubertus Heil says: “I can either do or do nothing with this ideological debate, on the one hand the rent brake on the other hand building. The most important thing is to increase the offer. We need more residential construction in Germany. ”Heil quickly explains why the rent brake, which has been in place for six years, is not effective:“ It has not been put into effect in all federal states by the respective state governments. ”
The journalist Julie Kurz warns, however, in view of her own experience, because she has lived in London: “There is still room for improvement.
The time in London has shown that, for 80 square meters you paid 3,000 euros. "Heil replies that such developments are not laws of nature:" Hamburg, for example, tackled the subject in 2011 under Olaf Scholz.
They now have ten times more social housing than the state of Baden-Württemberg per population. "
“Hard but fair” - these guests participated in the discussion
Hubertus Heil
(SPD) - politician
Tilman Kuban
(CDU) - politician
Ricarda Lang
(Greens) - politician
Julie Kurz
- journalist
Rainer Hank
- publicist
It takes time to stimulate the housing market through private and public investments, explains Heil further: “It takes time because we have capacity problems.
Soil has to be provided, it is about building permits, which have to be granted more quickly. ”“ This argument, ”horrified Hank I've been listening for ten years now and I'm slowly not believing it anymore. "
Berlin rent caps and expropriation initiatives make the political differences clear
When everyone started talking about the rent cover tipped by the Federal Constitutional Court, Hubertus Heil said: “It's not about us re-launching the Berlin rent cover.” “No,” Ricarda Lang agrees, “we don't want that either. “Talkmaster Plasberg replies that the Berlin rent cover was an idea of the left and the SPD enthusiastically supported it - his question: Is that a foretaste of a red-red-green coalition? “The answer is no,” says Heil after some excited babble of voices, “because our model is different.” Essentially, the SPD is not concerned with lowering rents, but rather with limiting rent increases in tense regions: “Need that we in the next four or five years. "
When the Berlin referendum on the expropriation of real estate companies arrives, Plasberg insists on asking Ricarda Lang for her vote, because as a citizen of Berlin she is entitled to vote.
She avoids a clear answer: “To be honest, I will still have to make a decision in the next two weeks.” The fact that half of the Berlin population can now imagine voting for expropriation shows how serious the problem is.
“Perhaps we are in agreement on this,” Heil throws in concluding on the subject, “that expropriations do not create new apartments.”
"Hard but fair" - the conclusion of the show
“Hart aber Fair” addresses the housing shortage in Germany's metropolitan areas just two weeks before the general election. Hubertus Heil (SPD), Federal Minister for Labor and Social Affairs, naturally has a lot to say about this, especially during election campaign times. But his main opponent in the discussion is not Tilman Kuban (CDU), chairman of the Junge Union, but the publicist Rainer Hank and host Frank Plasberg. Greens Vice President Ricarda Lang is often in line with Heil, but presents her positions with more fire. The journalist Julie Kurz has a difficult time in the debate and rarely has a say.
