As of: March 27, 2024, 7:13 p.m
By: Bettina Menzel
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MPs sit in the German Bundestag in Berlin (symbolic image).
© IMAGO/Christian Ditsch/epd
While employees have to negotiate for a wage increase, this is automatic for members of parliament.
The nominal wage in Germany is rising - and with it the diets of parliamentarians.
Berlin - Wages in Germany rose by six percent in 2023 - by law, MPs' diets also automatically increased by this amount.
Members of the Lower Saxony state parliament will get even more from July 1st, as
Bild
reported.
The Taxpayers' Association takes a critical view of this.
Record diet increase: Members of the Bundestag will receive six percent more from July
Germany has one of the largest parliaments in the world: 736 members sit in the German Bundestag.
Every year on July 1st, the parliamentarians' diet automatically adjusts to the nominal wage index.
This year, the monthly compensation for MPs climbed from 10,591.70 euros to 11,227 euros, as calculated by the Taxpayers' Association (BdSt).
The six percent increase in diets is a record: there has not been such an increase since 1995, according to the BdSt.
The adjustment is generally automatic, but MPs can also decide against it.
This was last the case in 2020 during the corona pandemic.
In the Lower Saxony state parliament, members of parliament will receive 6.2 percent more from July 1st because wage increases in the state are higher than the national average.
From the current basic salary of 7,635.19, the salary will soon climb to 8,108.57 euros,
Bild
reported .
The Lower Saxony state parliament admits that the question of the appropriateness of diets is always a sensitive issue given the tight public budget.
Since parliamentarians themselves decide on the amount of compensation, the public is often accused of self-service.
That's why "the Lower Saxony state parliament is letting a neutral diet commission[...] decide whether the MP's compensation is appropriate," the state parliament continued.
Diet increase in the Bundestag: Taxpayers’ Association criticizes automatism – “no discussion”
In principle, high diets for members of parliament also serve to protect against corruption.
“Behind this is the public’s legitimate claim that representatives of the people should be independent,” says the Lower Saxony state parliament.
In addition, without diets, “only people with wealth or high incomes could take up a mandate.
In this case, the majority of the population would be excluded from parliament,” the statement continued.
The Taxpayers' Association particularly criticizes the automaticity of the increase.
“With this fully automatic system, there will be no discussion, no debate or declaration by members of the Bundestag to the population,” commented BdSt President Reiner Holznagel.
“Transparency and more justification in the form of a proper legislative process are all the more important if the MPs want to decide on higher diets for themselves.” A request from
Merkur.de
from
IPPEN.MEDIA
to the Lower Saxony state parliament initially went unanswered.