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It is a difficult but solvable task for Parliament
Photo: Herby Sachs/WDR
Ulrike Hermann
works for “die tageszeitung” Berlin.
Photo: Herby Sachs/WDR
Admittedly, it is unusual for a government to submit a draft budget to parliament that contains unfunded gaps. At least 2.4 billion euros are currently still missing. But it is not a scandal; the Bundestag is taking it seriously. As is well known, the most important right of every parliament is to decide on finances and taxes. It is not the government that decides on laws, but the members of parliament. This also applies to the budget law. So it is the task of the traffic light factions to close the billion-euro gap. Of course, it would have been more convenient for the members of parliament if the government had already agreed on how it wanted to fill the gaps. But parliamentarians are not entitled to this service.
The former SPD parliamentary group leader Peter Struck coined the beautiful phrase: “No law leaves the Bundestag the same way it came in.” This bon mot went down in history as “Struck’s Law.” The traffic light government is now using the sovereignty of parliament to avoid annoying debates about cuts – and to push them onto the MPs.
However, it will also be very difficult for parliament to close the budget gap. The real problem is the debt brake. Germany would have to invest massively in its infrastructure, in defense and in climate protection. But loans are hardly allowed, even though investments can only be financed through debt. Germany is strangling itself. The fierce, ongoing budget dispute, first in the government and soon in parliament, is just the result of this senseless dogmatism.
Contra
Too much is too much: The coalition makes itself vulnerable again
Photo: Matthias Lüdecke
Manfred Schäfers
works for the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung”.
Photo: Matthias Lüdecke
The government has delivered a piecemeal budget. It has not managed to produce a draft that is ready for discussion. This finding is difficult to doubt, as the FDP finance minister and the SPD parliamentary group leader agree on this point. Neither Christian Lindner nor Rolf Mützenich believe that the draft is ready for a decision; both believe that further work is urgently required. What is the issue?
According to the Basic Law, all expenditure must be offset by income. Loans are permitted to a certain extent. The coalition has not only exhausted this framework, but is planning on significantly reducing expenditure and increasing income globally. This assumes that not all of the funds it now estimates as necessary will be needed. And that more will come into the federal coffers than the current economic situation and legal situation would suggest.
To a certain extent, this is common practice and justifiable. But too much is too much. Those involved know this themselves. Their actions contradict the budgetary principles of truth and clarity. To make matters worse, the coalition is working with returns from emergency measures, which is not compatible with the Federal Constitutional Court’s ruling on the supplementary budget that the traffic light coalition passed shortly after its launch. The coalition is making itself vulnerable again. Because the government leadership was unable to present a coherent draft in which expenditure and income are related to each other as the Basic Law stipulates, the MPs have to make even more improvements. Good governance looks different.
More about the 2025 budget
Debate on the debt brake: Economists are open to higher debt – with one exception
More funds for the armed forces and infrastructure are needed. Economists are discussing a new special fund and a reform of the debt brake.
Budget 2025: “We need a new special fund for the Bundeswehr”
The economist Stefan Kolev defends the debt brake, but advocates for another special fund for the German armed forces. He wants to abolish public holidays to finance it.
Www Bundestag de English
The Bundestag: Germany’s Federal Parliament and Its Role in Shaping the Country’s Future
The Bundestag, Germany’s federal parliament,
