Woidke: Possibility for credit-financed energy price brake

Created: 09/28/2022, 21:21

Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke (SPD) takes part in a debate in the state parliament.

© Jens Kalaene/dpa/image archive

Brandenburg's Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke (SPD) is pushing for an exemption from the debt brake to finance an energy price brake.

The SPD politician described the consultation of the heads of government on Wednesday as an important step for the negotiations with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) on Tuesday (October 4).

"What we need now is an expansion of the energy supply and the energy price brake," said Woidke according to the announcement.

Berlin/Potsdam - "It will be unavoidable to make an exception to the debt brake.

As states, we are largely in agreement.” Now the states have to see that they can come to an agreement with the federal government that is acceptable for everyone.

The federal states are calling for an energy price cap for electricity, gas and heat in order to limit the cost explosions for private households and companies, as North Rhine-Westphalia's Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst (CDU) announced on Wednesday evening after a special conference of the Prime Ministers on the planned relief package III in Berlin.

This will be discussed in federal-state talks next Tuesday.

According to Berlin's Governing Mayor Franziska Giffey (SPD), there is disagreement among the state leaders as to how future relief for citizens in the energy crisis can be financed.

According to their statements, the SPD-led states have explicitly spoken out in favor of being able to take out new loans for financing beyond the limitation of the debt brake.

dpa