Traffic light coalition: Scholz: Basic child security is available until next week

Chancellor Olaf Scholz wants to settle the dispute over basic child security in a few days. “The federal government will clarify by next week how the basic child security system will be structured in concrete terms,” ​​said the SPD politician to the newspapers of the Bavarian media group (“Passauer Neue Presse”, “Mittelbayerische Zeitung”, “Donaukurier”). “At the same time, Germany needs a nationwide range of crèches and day-care centers, if possible without fees. We are supporting the federal states in a federal-state program to ensure that this progresses.”

In the first cabinet meeting after the summer break, the dispute over basic child security escalated. Family Minister Lisa Paus (Greens) blocked the law for more economic growth by Finance Minister Christian Linder (FDP) because she did not yet see the financing of her project to secure basic child security. On Tuesday, Scholz and his 16 ministers will meet at Schloss Meseberg near Berlin for their fifth cabinet retreat.

The Chancellor considers further disputes in the traffic light coalition to be counterproductive. “I can only warn against that. The government has made many far-reaching decisions that will ensure more speed and more modernization in our country,” he said. “We should focus more on highlighting the successes of government work and having the necessary discussions about our plans internally.”

Scholz also spoke out against the impression that Germany was developing into the “sick man of Europe” due to its weak economic growth. “We mustn’t badmouth Germany as a business location. Our country continues to have good economic prospects.” Because Germany is so successful in exports, it feels a weakening of the global economy particularly strongly. “But that also applies the other way around: if the global economy picks up again, we will also benefit more,” said Scholz.