While the coalition negotiations between the SPD, FDP and the Greens are in progress, climate protectors from “Fridays for Future” demonstrate in Berlin. You criticize the exploratory paper as too slack. But Green leader Baerbock defends herself against criticism.
Almost four weeks after the federal elections, hundreds of climate protection activists demonstrate in Berlin to support their demands on the future federal government. Supporters of the “Fridays for Future” movement protested at the Brandenburg Gate on Friday afternoon under the motto “You leave us no choice”. According to the police, around 1300 participants were there at the start. More people are on the way to the action, reported a spokesman. According to the organizers, around 3,000 participants from all over Germany had come. The protest march was supposed to pull back through the government district to the Brandenburg Gate. The demonstration is also the prelude to the days of action for which the “Justice Now!” on the occasion of the coalition negotiations between the SPD, Greens and FDP.
The alliance wants to persuade the parties of the possible future traffic light coalition to take comprehensive measures for climate protection – with great emphasis. The parties have so far “not provided a real answer to the climate crisis,” it said. It was only on Wednesday that FFF asked the incoming federal government. Within its first 100 days, the new government is expected to pass a 1.5 ° C-compliant CO2 budget, to phase out natural gas by 2035 and to increase the expansion of solar and wind energy sevenfold. According to the FFF, the installation of combustion engines in cars should be banned from 2025.
Baerbock defends himself against criticism
Green party leader Annalena Baerbock has defended herself against the accusation that the current federal government’s climate targets could be softened in a future traffic light coalition. “If we fall short of the targets, then we can take all this paper and throw it in the trash can,” said Baerbock on Thursday evening in the ZDF program “Maybrit Illner” on the climate protection proposals in the exploratory paper, the SPD, Greens and FDP in the past week.
“All sectors must continue to make their contribution to climate protection,” said Baerbock. In the exploratory paper of the Greens, SPD and FDP it is said that they want to check compliance with the climate targets “on the basis of a cross-sectoral and multi-year overall account analogous to the Paris climate agreement”.
Exploratory paper on climate protection is not very specific
So far, it has been checked every year whether the individual sectors such as energy, transport or agriculture are achieving their annual climate targets. If not enough greenhouse gases are saved, the government must take action. Critics interpreted the wording in the exploratory paper as saying goodbye to the annual sector targets. But this is “by no means wanting to be deleted,” said Baerbock. It is now also a question of how measures should be taken into account that do not have an immediate effect, but even more so in the medium term. “The coal phase-out, for example, will give a huge boost to the climate, but only in a few years – something like this should also be listed,” explained the Greens chairman.
In the exploratory paper of the possible traffic light coalition, under the heading “Climate protection in a socio-ecological market economy”, it is not very specific. There it says, for example: “We will continue to develop the Climate Protection Act consistently in 2022 and launch an immediate climate protection program with all the necessary laws, ordinances and measures.” The expansion of renewable energies should be accelerated “drastically”. Or: “In order to meet the climate protection targets, an accelerated phase-out of coal-fired power generation is necessary. Ideally, this will be achieved by 2030.” However, it is only an exploratory paper in which the parties first have to roughly agree on a consensus. Even the coalition agreement – if it comes about – should be much more specific.
The last climate strike took place just a few weeks ago – shortly before the federal election, people demonstrated in more than 470 German cities. “Fridays for Future” put the total number of participants at 620,000.
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