As of: March 1, 2024, 10:27 a.m
By: Nils Hinsberger
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Press
Split
The law on payment cards for asylum seekers has caused disputes in the coalition.
Now the Greens agree to the plan – traffic light breakage averted?
Berlin – The traffic light coalition has settled its dispute over the introduction of a payment card for asylum seekers.
After the Greens initially expressed concerns about a nationwide solution, the Federal Ministry of Economics, led by Robert Habeck, has now given in,
Bild
and
Table Media
reported .
According to dpa
information, a formulation aid from the Federal Ministry of Labor for the planned law is to
be decided by the cabinet on Friday (March 1st).
Green Party leader Ricarda Lang justified the blocking of nationwide regulation of payment cards by saying that the necessary conditions for an introduction were already in place.
“In reality, it’s already running.
The tendering process for the 14 countries that have not yet launched it is already underway,” said Lang in an interview with
Bild
.
Instead of introducing a new law, the government must “move away from the theoretical debates and get into action,” said Lang.
Federal states demanded legal certainty from the traffic light for payment cards for asylum seekers
At the end of January, 14 of 16 federal states agreed to introduce a payment card.
This is intended to prevent state funds from being transferred abroad to smugglers or families and friends of asylum seekers.
The Federal Ministry of Economics is now also joining this.
Since the federal states feared lawsuits, the federal government insisted on a uniform regulation, reported the
dpa
.
The coalition partners SPD and FDP supported the states' demand.
Green Party Minister Robert Habeck's Federal Ministry of Economics has approved the payment card for asylum seekers.
© Montage: Philipp von Ditfurth/Michael Kappeler/dpa
The agreement that has now been reached stipulates that every adult member of a household who is entitled to benefits should receive their own payment card.
The design of the maps is the responsibility of the individual federal states.
The dpa
said, citing internal government circles , that they had already agreed on minimum standards in working groups
.
According to the Greens, payment cards for asylum seekers must not become an obstacle to integration
Detailed questions now need to be clarified in the Bundestag.
The central question is whether asylum seekers who work, study or do training here and receive supportive state benefits should even receive a payment card.
“Payment cards must not prevent people from integrating into Germany,” said Green Party deputy Andrea Audretsch to the
dpa
.
The anti-attitude had once again caused controversy in the traffic light coalition.
The SPD's domestic policy spokesman, Sebastian Hartmann, told the
Tagesspiegel
that the Green Ministry of Economic Affairs was blocking the proposed law "unfortunately for incomprehensible reasons."
FDP parliamentary group vice-president Wolfgang Kubicki even threatened to break the coalition: “If the Greens actually torpedo this minimally invasive intervention in the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act, that will question the continuation of the coalition,” he said in an interview with
Bild
.
(nhi)