FDP has concerns about compulsory vaccination against Corona

Created: 01/06/2022Updated: 01/06/2022, 2:52 pm

Christian Lindner, Federal Chairman of the FDP, speaks at the party's Epiphany.

© Uli Deck / dpa

The FDP does not want to rule out compulsory vaccinations, but skepticism is growing.

The party leadership in the southwest is calling for alternatives.

Stuttgart - At the traditional Epiphany meeting of the FDP, the Liberals expressed considerable doubts about a general vaccination requirement.

"I am no longer fundamentally against it," said party leader Christian Lindner on the sidelines of the meeting with the German Press Agency in Stuttgart.

"But I have not made a positive decision either." For example, he is not yet familiar with the group proposals in the Bundestag.

FDP regional leader Michael Theurer also expressed concerns: "Personally, I am still skeptical about a fine, because I got the impression that a fine will probably not induce die-hard anti-vaccination opponents to get vaccinated." A vaccination appointment and the obligation to consult a doctor could possibly increase the willingness to vaccinate.

Lindner referred to the development of the situation around the Omikron variant.

“So it's good that we take our time,” he said.

"For the fifth, for the Omikron wave, a general compulsory vaccination would not make a contribution either."

"The longer the discussion continues, the more it turns out that mandatory vaccination is not a panacea," said Theurer.

It is a deceptive hope that compulsory vaccination as a panacea will lead to an end to the pandemic.

The Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Transport stated, for example, that vaccinated people could still be contagious, that there were new mutations and that people with previous illnesses could not be vaccinated.

The Bundestag is expected to decide this year in a free vote without parliamentary group discipline on the compulsory vaccination.

The FDP parliamentary group leader Hans-Ulrich Rülke is also skeptical about compulsory vaccination against Corona.

Unvaccinated people would accept major restrictions, said Rülke in the Stuttgart State Opera, which was almost empty due to the pandemic.

The question arises whether the vague threat of a fine could convince the unvaccinated.

He expects that proponents of compulsory vaccination also talk about implementation.

"And not, like Winfried Kretschmann, first ask for something and then determine afterwards: That doesn't work, as he already demonstrated five times last year".

Rülke criticized the Green Prime Minister for withdrawing the Easter rest period and the unclear 2G-plus regulations at the beginning of December.

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Kretschmann comes with "MPK fairy tales," said Rülke - he blames the Prime Minister's Conference for the mistakes of his Corona policy.

The federal and state conference is not a legislative body at all.

Kretschmann could enforce measures such as the so-called 2G-Plus rule or ghost games even in Baden-Württemberg, said Rülke.

The head of government, on the other hand, only gives the appearance of acting, but in reality does not achieve anything - and where he decides on measures, they lead to chaos.

He's only interested in symbolic politics, said Rülke.

The group leader also railed against the planned mobility guarantee.

The state government has resolved that by 2030 all places in the south-west can be reached by local public transport from 5 a.m. to midnight.

"That won't work everywhere in the Black Forest and the Swabian Alb," said Rülke.

He rejects the planned local transport tax, which is intended to help municipalities expand local public transport.

Country chief Theurer accused Grün-Schwarz of a policy of standstill.

"The Prime Minister, whom I personally appreciate very much, he seems increasingly petrified in some political discussions," said Theurer.

"The green-black government here is increasingly a standstill coalition."

The FDP traditionally gets in the mood for the political year with its Epiphany in Stuttgart.

Due to the pandemic, it took place as an online event for the second time in a row this year.

Only the party leadership gathered in the Stuttgart Opera House.

dpa