The corona aid for companies expires at the end of the year.
Federal Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier sees this with concern and calls for an extension.
Berlin - The acting Federal Minister of Economics, Peter Altmaier, has spoken out in favor of extending Corona economic aid until the end of March.
He thinks this makes sense, said the CDU politician on Friday in Berlin.
He was talking about it within the executive federal government at ministerial level, said Altmaier with a view to Finance Minister Olaf Scholz (SPD).
Corona: As the number of infections increases, so do the uncertainties among companies
Bridging aid III Plus, the federal government's central crisis instrument, is currently limited to the end of 2021.
Business associations such as the German Hotel and Restaurant Association (DEHOGA) had requested an extension until the end of March.
That would be analogous to the already announced extension for a simplified regulation on short-time work for companies and employees who are in difficulties due to the pandemic.
Altmaier said the upswing in the German economy was robust.
Fewer companies have applied for bridging aid since September.
Due to the worsening of the corona situation, however, uncertainties have increased.
Corona aid: Over 10,000 companies receive aid from the state
With an extension of the aid, the winter months could be covered and a "thread break" prevented.
By October 21, 2021, a good 10,000 applications for bridging aid III Plus had been approved and almost 450 million euros had been paid out.
Bridging aid III Plus is given to companies with a corona-related drop in sales of at least 30 percent.
Fixed operating costs are reimbursed.
This help also grants a so-called restart bonus, which is intended to help companies get their staff out of short-time working more quickly.
Schleswig-Holstein's Economics Minister Bernd Buchholz (FDP), on the other hand, has called for the Corona bridging aid to expire at the end of the year.
“For regulatory reasons, we have to make sure that this does not become permanent funding,” he said.
(dpa / ph)
