Exploratory talks
Union and SPD want to take coalition negotiations
The exploratory talks between the Union and the SPD have come to a successful conclusion. The coalition negotiations could begin next week.
Almost two weeks after the Bundestag election, the leaders from the Union and SPD have agreed on the central issues and now want to accept concrete coalition negotiations on government formation. There was “agreement in a number of factual issues,” said Union faction leader Friedrich Merz after the decisive round of advice in Berlin. The details are about these points:
- Citizenship law: The nationality law reformed by the traffic light coalition should continue to exist. The shortened waiting periods for naturalization and the double pass for non-EU citizens should remain.
- Returns: In the future, people will also be rejected at the land boundaries who will provide an asylum application – but only in coordination with the neighboring countries. In principle, rejections are only possible where there are stationary border controls. Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) has successively ordered it for all German land borders in recent years – but if you want to apply for asylum, you can usually enter.
- Tax reform: The “wide middle class” should be relieved according to the exploratory paper. A reform of income tax is planned. In addition, the commuter flat rate in the tax return is to be increased.
- Citizens’ allowance: The civil allowance system is to be revised. “We will redesign the previous civil allowance system towards basic security for job seekers,” said CDU boss Friedrich Merz. “For people who can work and repeatedly refuse to work, a complete deprivation of performance is carried out.”
- Gastronomy: The sales tax for food in the catering trade is said to decrease permanently to 7 percent. VAT in gastronomy had already been reduced from 19 to 7 percent in the Corona period, but only temporarily.
- Electricity tax: In order to relieve companies and private households, the electricity tax is intended to drop to the minimum value permitted in the EU. This should lead to relief by at least five cents per kilowatt hour. The Union and SPD also want to halve the transmission network charges, part of the electricity price.
- E-cars: In order to boost the slow demand for electric cars again, the Union and SPD are again “a buying incentive”. An existing purchase bonus had been stopped by the traffic light coalition at the end of 2023 due to budgetary needs, after which the demand decreased noticeably.
- Agriculture: The one for agrardiesel breaks for farmers decided by the traffic light coalition is to be overturned.
- Local transport: The popular Germany ticket for buses and trains is on the table in the coalition negotiations – advice is to be discussed beyond the continuation beyond the end of the year.
- Pension: If you continue to work voluntarily in retirement, you should be able to earn tax -free up to 2000 euros a month. The so -called mother’s pension is to be expanded: Three instead of a maximum of two and a half educational years, as previously born before 1992, should be counted towards the pension.
- Care: In view of the increasing billions of billions, the Union and SPD want to get “a large nursing reform” on the way.
SPD boss Lars Klingbeil also spoke of “constructive” conversations. Union and SPD have shown that they take responsibility. “We have now succeeded in a first important step with this exploratory paper.” CSU boss Markus Söder said there were no winners and losers of the talks, but new partners. On the question of whether he was satisfied, he said: “Bits Scho.”
Is there a coalition until Easter?
If the party bodies agree, work on the coalition agreement can begin. In it, the parties record which projects they want to tackle together in the legislative period – and also which party which is which ministry occupies. The expected future Chancellor Friedrich Merz has given the goal of being negotiations until Easter.
The Union clearly won the Bundestag election on February 23 at 28.5 percent. The SPD landed behind the AfD (20.8 percent) at 16.4 percent. There is no alternative to the black and red coalition because black and green has no majority and working with the AfD is clearly excluded from the Union.
The explorations between the Union and the SPD had started at the end of last week. In the central financial issues, the exploitationers have already achieved a breakthrough on Tuesday with the relaxation of the debt brake and a gigantic special fund for infrastructure. The Union came up very far from the SPD and even threw campaign promises over the pile. In the Union, it was hoped that the SPD was accommodated at the main contestation point of migration. That has now been the case with migration.
This article is continuously updated.
Dpa
EPP
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
