As of: March 13, 2024, 2:50 p.m
By: Bona Hyun
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Chancellor Scholz emphasizes again that the traffic light wants to secure pension levels in the long term.
Nevertheless, criticism of the reform plans continues.
Berlin – The traffic light coalition wants to stabilize pension levels and ensure a secure pension.
The basic idea: 45 years of paying contributions should continue to result in a pension of 48 percent of average income.
To this end, the federal government has launched Pension Package II.
“It is important that we set out to secure pension levels well beyond 2025,” said Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) in his speech in the Bundestag on Wednesday (March 13).
Scholz wants to ensure a “stable pension” – and also relies on “generational capital”
“We are stabilizing the pension level in the long term and supplementing it with generational capital,” emphasizes Scholz.
The aim is to ensure a “stable pension”, said Scholz.
For a long time, the traffic light struggled with details for the stock pension - a project close to Christian Lindner's (FDP) heart.
The idea behind this is that the state itself will invest in the stock markets in the future.
By 2035, a capital stock of 200 billion euros should be built up.
The introduction of share capital is intended to create a new source of finance for the statutory pension insurance for the first time, thus relieving the burden on contributors and the federal budget.
What sounds plausible in theory could, however, cause problems.
Scholz wants to ensure a “stable pension” in the long term.
© Political Moments/imago
Scholz wants to stabilize pension levels - contributors may have to pay for stock pensions
“Buying stocks on credit offers little return and is extremely risky.
Statutory pension insurance is extremely unsuitable for speculating on the stock market,” criticized Ulrich Schneider, general manager of the General Parity Association, in an interview with ZDF (March 10).
With the planned generational capital to strengthen pensions, contributions would increase significantly, DIW boss Fratzscher also warned in an interview with the
Tagesschau.
This means: In the end, the share pension could come at the expense of the contributors.
In addition, you often hear criticism of the amount itself. It is far too low.
“The annual expenditure of the statutory pension insurance amounts to almost 400 billion euros.
Even with a rather favorable assumed net income of 5 percent (stock returns over interest expenses), it would require a capital stock of eight trillion euros to bring the pension fully funded,” said Jens Boysen-Hogrefe, from the Institute for the World Economy, to
ZDF
.
Criticism of stock pensions and pension levels of 48 percent
But critics point to a big problem: What happens when the stock market doesn't perform as hoped?
In the worst case, the state could make a loss on its investment - then the pension insurance would have less money than has been invested.
The pension reform therefore poses a risk.
This risk would be lower if Germany had started stock pensions earlier.
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The pension level of 48 percent is also apparently inadequate.
The chairwoman of the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB), Yasmin Fahimi, considers this to be too low.
“I would also find 50 percent quite appropriate,” says Fahimi.
“At least it’s the right signal.
But actually it would require a permanent commitment.
Then the generational contract also works,” Fahimi told
Bild am Sonntag
.
By permanently she means “forever.”