Klingbeil does not see parental allowance as a social benefit and therefore finds the cuts wrong.
(Photo: dpa)
Berlin, Castrop-Rauxel The next dispute over family policy is emerging in the traffic light government. On Monday, the FDP and the Ministry of Finance it led clearly opposed a proposal by SPD leader Lars Klingbeil to abolish the controversial marriage splitting for newly concluded marriages. “The abolition of spouse splitting would simply be a tax increase for many couples,” tweeted the parliamentary state secretary in the Ministry of Finance, FDP politician Florian Toncar. Tax increases have been ruled out in the traffic light coalition agreement between the SPD, the Greens and the FDP.
In the environment of the Ministry of Finance it was said that the abolition would be a “gigantic additional burden for the middle of society”. Families and couples would then be burdened with an additional 25 billion euros per year. “There are no majorities for that.”
Klingbeil, on the other hand, spoke out in favor of abolition. “In this way we would put an end to the antiquated tax model that favors the traditional distribution of roles between men and women.” In practice, this often prevents women from returning to work after a family-related break.
Green co-leader Ricarda Lang spoke of an interesting proposal by the SPD leader, which, however, could not be resolved in the traffic light coalition negotiations. The Greens are open to the proposal.
He could prevent that the parental allowance would no longer apply to all families. Family Minister Lisa Paus (Greens) wants to slightly reduce the group of beneficiaries by lowering the income limit to 150,000 euros, up to which couples can apply for parental allowance. She justifies this by saying that she has to implement a savings target from the Ministry of Finance. The parental allowance is primarily intended to ensure that more men take a career break after the birth of their child. Lang said that if savings have to be made, then they should be as socially acceptable as possible. 95 percent of the families would not be affected by the Paus proposal. The Greens are also ready to discuss possible changes here.
For months, a dispute has been smoldering in the government about the implementation and financing of basic child security. In the financial plan approved by the cabinet up to 2027, only an additional two billion euros are earmarked for this from 2025. Family Minister Paus demands significantly more.
More: Guest comment: Couples with an income of 150,000 euros are not super-rich – cutting their parental allowance is absurd
First publication: 07/10/2023, 07:51.