Coalition agreement signed – Lindner praises Scholz

Dusseldorf Also in the first joint federal press conference of the new traffic light coalition, FDP boss Christian Lindner found words of praise for the designated Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD): The financial planning of the previous finance minister was “forward-looking”, so that the budget planning for the coming year, the provides for a new debt of 100 billion euros, the current situation is “adequate”.

But not only Scholz received praise from Lindner: When asked about a tough austerity course in Europe, the FDP leader said that Greece was seeing impressive successes through reforms. Therefore, he is already looking forward to talks with Athens.

As finance minister, he wanted to stand up for stability in Germany. He will pay “great attention” to inflation, which is currently at its highest level in decades, emphasized Lindner. The federal financial policy will take this into account, said the liberal, who also refers to the number of special effects in the wake of the pandemic.

Budget, euro, inflation – the capital city journalists confronted Lindner with the big issues. Olaf Scholz and the designated Economics and Climate Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) sat with him on the podium at the Federal Press Conference. Shortly before, the party leaders had signed the coalition agreement and thus sealed the traffic light alliance.

On the subject of foreign policy, the journalists repeatedly referred to the conflict between the United States and China, which had recently intensified as a result of the United States’ diplomatic boycott of the Olympic Winter Games in Beijing in 2022.

Scholz left it open how Germany would position itself in this regard. He pointed out that despite possible differences, people around the world have to get along well. The question of what happens in specific situations will be discussed with partners – “and not speak at press conferences,” said the SPD politician.

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Scholz was similarly cautious about the rule of law in Poland and Hungary. The neighborhood to Poland should be made “friendly”. The rule of law must equally prevail everywhere in Europe. Together we have to advance the future. After good talks with Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki before the Bundestag election, plans are in place to continue these in the neighboring country as soon as possible.

The Chancellor-designate assured Poland of support in dealing with the conflict on the Belarusian border. The crisis is the result of the government’s policy in Minsk, which has no legitimation in its own population. The regime is trying to influence Europe at the expense of refugees. Anyone who does business with people must expect that this will have consequences. This needs to be made clear.

Scholz: Infection comes from unvaccinated people

Scholz defended the restrictions for unvaccinated people in Germany as a necessary means with comparable clarity. “The infection process that affects us all today comes from the unvaccinated.” There is no doubt about that.

Scholz said: “Many of them are also threatened themselves, because the probability that they will become infected is very, very high and therefore it is also very likely that some of them will become ill and some in the intensive care units around that Your own life will have to struggle. ”It is therefore very clear that restrictions are necessary for those who have not been vaccinated.

The designated economics and climate minister, Habeck, agreed that Germany would accept “unreasonable demands” in the expansion of renewable energies. An effort is necessary.

The new government plans to increase the share of renewable energies in electricity consumption to 80 percent in 2030. According to Habeck, this is a three to fourfold increase in the rate of expansion.

There will be a lot of social discussion about when the new goals should be achieved. So far, the goal of politics has been to increase the share of green electricity in electricity consumption to 65 percent by 2030. Last year, according to industry information, renewable energies had a share of around 45 percent.

Habeck also said with a view to the expansion of wind power on land, measures are possible that could have a very short-term effect. There are areas that have already been designated, but are blocked by other “protected assets”. One could perhaps achieve a short-term effect to release a kind of blockage. This could involve areas that have previously been used for air traffic control, for example.

Focus on promoting hydrogen

Habeck named the promotion of hydrogen production as a further directly effective measure. “Ultimately, however, I think that, if we’re honest, we will start with a backlog and drag this backlog with us for the first year and a half or two years.”

Habeck said that it would also be about longer-term measures that will be decided in the first year of the new government. The traffic light wants to shorten the planning and approval process, and two percent of the land area is to be designated for onshore wind energy – this has not yet been achieved by a long way.

Lindner emphasized that he sees his department as an “enabling ministry” that ensures that public and private projects can be implemented in the context of climate-friendly renovation. In the area of ​​mobility, for example, “extremely ambitious goals” have been set in order to further develop individual mobility by car in a climate-friendly manner and to increase the attractiveness and efficiency of rail transport.

With agency material

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