On Wednesday (November 15), the Federal Constitutional Court declared the changes to the 2021 supplementary budget unconstitutional. Now the traffic light government is facing a loss of 60 billion euros. The result is that demands for reform of the debt brake from spendthrift traffic light politicians are increasing. But not only this, now energy or climate solidarity is also being brought into play. Furthermore, citizens may have to give up promised climate money.
According to the decision of the Federal Constitutional Court, the federal government is not allowed to use funds that were actually meant to deal with the corona crisis for “climate protection” (i.e. support for the green lobby). During the “pandemic”, the previous government had the Bundestag approve loan authorizations worth billions of euros. Ultimately, 60 billion of these were not needed to deal with the “Corona crisis”. In 2022, Traffic Light reallocated funds to the so-called Climate and Change Fund (KTF) with the approval of the Bundestag. The union filed a lawsuit in Karlsruhe against this change in the second supplementary budget of 2021 and was right – The Federal Constitutional Court has deemed the use of corona loans for climate projects unconstitutional.
As a result, there is now a billion-dollar hole in the KTF, a surplus budget from which to finance various climate protection projects, such as energy-saving building subsidies, abolition of the EEG levy, promotion of electromobility, decarbonization of industry, hydrogen technology. Propaganda – and climate money – should also come from this. The Merkel government decided that all citizens should receive a climate bonus. This should be a social compensation for the CO2 surcharge, which should be paid for, among other things, refueling and heating. It is now doubtful whether the climate money, which has not been talked about for a long time, will even be paid out.
Permanent emergency or new levy
What is certain is that the traffic lights are now 60 billion euros short of the budget. How should this gap be filled? Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) wants to freeze debt and abandon tax increases. Then imposing a new tax or levy could be considered. This possibility has already been implemented by one of the most important government advisors. “Economic philosopher” Achim Trüger told “Welt” that reform of the debt brake would be the cleanest, fundamental solution. It is also possible to continue using the debt break exception rule and declare a state of emergency for several years. An alternative would be to compensate for the income shortfall in the budget through temporary energy or climate solidarity. “This decision is a blow to the federal government,” the socio-economist said after the verdict. “But there are still practical ways to limit the damage.”
It is possible that citizens will not only be deprived of the promised climate money, but may instead be left with the additional burden of climate solidarity. In Germany, a “limited” tax quickly becomes a permanent tax. Indeed, traffic lights, which clearly have not a revenue problem but an expense problem, should not think about anything other than saving – Christmas geese by subsidizing taxpayers in the name of already useless “green” projects. Like being abandoned. climate. In the end there is nothing left for them – instead the tax money that does not fall victim to the climate lie is sent abroad.
(TagstoTranslate)Federal Constitutional Court(T)Germany(T)KFT(T)Climate Solidarity
