Ex-minister cooperates with energy supplier MVV
Created: 01/11/2022, 6:26 PM
Franz Untersteller, then Environment Minister, speaks during a government press conference.
© Sebastian Gollnow / dpa / archive
Ex-Environment Minister Franz Untersteller will advise the Mannheim energy supplier MVV less than a year after his retirement from politics.
MVV announced on Tuesday that it would promote the exchange between the company and the municipalities regarding the phase-out of coal and solutions for environmentally friendly cities.
The Green politician was head of the environmental department between 2011 and 2021.
Mannheim - The trained landscape planner has been a member of the state parliament for the Stuttgart III constituency since 2006.
According to MVV, the cooperation with the 64-year-old was decided at the beginning of this year and will start immediately.
There is an expense allowance and no employment.
With around 6,200 employees and sales of around 3.5 billion euros in the 2020 financial year, MVV is, according to its own information, the fifth largest energy company in Germany.
MVV RWE GmbH is one of the owners of Grosskraftwerk Mannheim AG, which generates electricity from hard coal.
more on the subject
Tax-free premium required for medical assistants and nurses
Ramelow: Believe we can get the 2022 budget right
Food warning: salami may contain plastic pieces
In the south-west, unlike in many federal states, there is no waiting period for a member of the government to change jobs in the economy. Legally, there was nothing wrong with the transition, but the question arose as to whether this activity was legitimate, said Norman Loeckel from Transpareny. Waiting periods are intended to prevent former members of the government from taking decisions either beforehand in office or afterwards that bring advantages to the company or give them important access to decision-makers after the politician has left office. "If subordinates are paid, that would certainly be a conflict of interest," said Loeckel.
In other federal states such as North Rhine-Westphalia, the waiting period is twelve months.
The anti-corruption organization Transparency advocates three years in order to create a “real distance” from previous work.
dpa
