Industry: BDI boss criticizes Scholz: “Two lost years”

The President of the Federation of German Industries (BDI), Siegfried Russwurm, sharply criticized Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) for his handling of the current economic crisis. With a view to the previous government of the traffic light coalition, Russwurm told the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”: “It was two lost years – even if some of the decisions were made incorrectly beforehand.” Nevertheless, the traffic light government remains an important discussion partner for the industry.

Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) and Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) are in regular contact with business associations, and from Scholz you often only hear the quote “The lawsuit is the businessman’s song,” said Russwurm. “You can dismiss our analyzes in this way, but it shows that the seriousness of the situation is obviously being underestimated in the Chancellery,” the BDI boss told the newspaper.

Russwurm sees significantly slower growth as a result of the economic policy failures. Germany is continually losing market share compared to comparable countries and EU neighbors.

In the interview, the BDI boss called for a debate about which industries Germany could still afford given the changed world situation. “If strategic sovereignty is important to us, we have to accept that it also comes at a price and accept the higher costs,” he said. It is to be expected that some industries, such as ammonia production, will disappear from Germany in the medium term, said Russwurm.