(GermanPolicy.com) – The two Union parties have sharply criticized the Federal Government’s budgetary policy, which they described as “beautified and built on sand.” The financial expert of the CDU-CSU, Christian Haase, emphasized that the federal budget could not withstand a reality check. This is the case with regard to the net borrowing of 99.7 billion Euros for the current year, for key figures to apply in 2023, and for the federal debt brake. The numbers are pure marketing, Haase emphasized. The Federal Government significantly overestimated tax revenues, he added, claiming that investing 60 billion Euros in energy and climate funds is unconstitutional.

Debt brake to be reinforced from 2023, Lindner

Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) had previously announced that he wanted to once again comply with the debt brake anchored in the Basic Law from 2023 onwards. The new debt should be reduced to around 9 billion Euros and will be between 10 and 12 billion Euros until 2026. The debt brake caps new borrowing at a maximum of 0.35 percent of the German gross domestic product. Lindner plans to settle the Bundeswehr’s special assets of 100 billion Euros in a special pot outside the federal budget, which will independently take out loans. Those should only be repaid when the total amount of the special assets have been fully used. An amendment to the Basic Law will be necessary.

SPD: reassess next year

According faction leader in the Bundestag, Achim Post, the SPD parliamentary group wants to expand the climate and transformation fund, while the SPD left has spoken out in favor of suspending the debt brake in the coming year as well, since a “financial reassessment” will be necessary due to the war in Ukraine. Top earners should be taxed more, as should energy companies, the SPD left said. On the other hand, taxes for small and middle incomes should be lowered.