Where will the money for increased defense spending come from? In the program “Maybrit Illner” different approaches become clear between Finance Minister Lindner and Green Party leader Lang.
Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner has called for a multi-year moratorium on social spending and subsidies in order to be able to invest more money in defense. “I’m not concerned with the fact that we have to abolish things now. We can also discuss that. But the most important thing is that new subsidies, new social spending, new standards are not always added,” said the FDP leader in the ZDF program ” Maybrit Illner”. There is already quite a lot of that. “If we could manage to get by with what we have for three years, then that would be a really big step towards consolidation.”
Green Party leader Ricarda Lang also said Germany must invest more money to support Ukraine and to help make Europe more independent of the US in defense. But: “We must not pit external security against social security within the country.” It will not be possible to finance these tasks from the current budget. “We have to find other ways to do this.”
Clemens Fuest, President of the economic research institute Ifo, assumed that there would be no way around cuts in the social sector. “Cannons and butter – that would be nice if that were possible. But that’s the land of milk and honey. That’s not possible. But cannons without butter.” The welfare state will continue to be financed. “But it will just be smaller.”
Lindner emphasized the need to achieve more economic growth again in order to have higher tax revenues. “Germany must prosper again. We need dynamic growth,” said the FDP politician.
Source: Stern

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