The Greens without the Ministry of Finance – Handelsblatt Morning Briefing

It has become surprisingly quiet about the election winner Olaf Scholz. The more urgent corona problems bring back a social climate of fear, the more silent the social democrat became. Today, Thursday, he will appear in the Bundestag as finance minister, who is still in office. He presents the current tax estimate, which will bring the future traffic light coalition around ten billion euros more per annum.

Scholz statements on pandemic measures would be appropriate. From a chancellor with chancellor format, for example, one could expect a clear word about how Germany organizes “2G”, more vaccinations and testing, better controls and, above all, nationwide “boosters”. “If you don’t dare, you can’t hope for anything,” he says.

At the same time, around 300 negotiators in 22 working groups in Berlin wrote their final papers for red-yellow-green. From today on, the grandees of the SPD, Greens and FDP will haggle over the rest of the crowd. A message appeared in the “Frankfurter Allgemeine” with precise timing, according to which the Greens finally waived the Ministry of Finance, taking into account FDP sensitivities.

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In return, Robert Habeck would become head of an enlarged environment and climate ministry and Annalena Baerbock would become foreign minister – which is so obvious that everything had to be denied immediately. Incidentally, everyone is looking with greed at the development ministry’s 12.4 billion euro budget – which after 60 years of existence as an appendix in the foreign ministry is likely to end.

The irony of history: the last minister, Gerd Müller, was one of the few top performers in the old cabinet.

The US climate commissioner John Kerry forges partnerships at the climate summit in Glasgow.

(Photo: AP)

The day yesterday in Glasgow at the World Climate Conference offered a surprise at the end. Suddenly the superpowers USA and China, previously affectionately connected with mutual dislike, presented themselves together at a press conference. Message: “Let’s work together.”
They want to work together to reduce greenhouse gases in the next decade within the framework of the 1.5 degree target.

The announcement gives the COP26 a boost, after all, the world’s biggest climate offenders practice harmony here. China’s emissary Xie Zhenhua revealed that both sides recognize that there is a “gap” between current efforts and the goals of the Paris Agreement. US counterpart John Kerry spoke of a “road map” for future cooperation. There is no concrete information – but even if it was just PR, at least it was good PR.

The other positive news was that 24 states and 38 regions and cities signed the declaration to produce only electric cars by 2035. A fundamental dispute and a dogma debate then broke out in Germany. You can read about why in detail in the reporting on our Auto Summit 2021.

A fundamental dispute has broken out over the end of the internal combustion engine.

(Photo: www.imago-images.de)

VW and BMW are of the opinion of Andreas Scheuer (CSU) – yes, really, he is still Minister of Transport – that the internal combustion engine is anything but an obsolete model. There are still synthetic fuels.

  • VW-Chef Herbert Diess, who has almost been experienced as a shaman of e-mobility, is now declaring that the Volkswagen brand must also serve markets where electrification “does not make ecological sense yet”. Porsche and Audi, on the other hand, electrified extremely quickly, according to the ex-BMW board member.
  • The current BMW– Chef Oliver Zipse again proclaims that he can only warn against taking the Glaswegian route: “If the conditions for electromobility are not created around the world, this is not conducive to the climate.” In Munich they play the record “Technological Openness”.
  • Just Daimler– CEO Ola Källenius is entirely with the climate protectionists: The declaration from Scotland is “not in conflict with what we have already said.” His motto: All power on one technology. In addition to Daimler, the Chinese-controlled car companies BYD and Volvo as well as Ford and General Motors from the USA and Jaguar Land Rover (India) signed the declaration.

The arguments reflect the whole diversity of the market. One suspects, however, that the contribution made by the automotive industry to reducing emissions could turn out to be less than necessary. And thinks of Leo Tolstoy: “It is easier to write ten volumes on philosophy than to put a principle into practice.”

America’s President Joe Biden has a new priority: He wants to take decisive action against inflation in the future. What else can he do in the face of a horrible 6.2 percent increase in consumer prices in October compared to the previous year. This is the highest value since 1990 – and is clearly above the expectations of the analysts (5.9 percent) and also above the previous month (5.4 percent).

The US Federal Reserve’s standard formula of “likely temporary” price effects is slowly collapsing. An expansive fiscal policy, high savings volume and wage increases are currently the drivers of inflation. And so the Fed – inflation target: two percent – is unlikely to be able to help but turn back securities purchases further. And to raise interest rates again in a year at the latest.

Economically, Poland is the EU’s wonderland. Unemployment is nowhere else in the Union and the gross domestic product has more than doubled since 2004. This is also due to the generous donations from the EU. Politically, on the other hand, Poland is the community’s troublemaker: nationalist, illiberal and so black in government that it casts shadows in the coal cellar. And this despite the fact that 89 percent of the population welcomes EU membership.

My colleague Mathias Brüggmann describes how the fear of the “Polexit” – of the exodus from the EU – is spreading among family entrepreneurs in the country. Typical, what Janusz Aniol, head of Raben Logistics, the largest forwarding company in the country, explains: “If our government should actually exit, our business is dead.”
This people definitely cannot be left alone with their government.

And then there is a previously unknown song called “Radhe Shaam”Recorded by two Beatles in 1968: George Harrison and Ringo Starr. The journalist Suresh Joshi wrote and produced the work – a coincidence that he found again during the lockdown while cleaning up his loft.

After the restoration of the demo tape, the song will now be released and all proceeds will go to social causes. After all, Harrison said at the time that he felt himself to be an “underdog” with the Beatles and had lost his self-confidence. Let everything be a matter of humanity, that’s what Harrison wanted, said Joshi.
We don’t know how good the music is. But let’s sing along with the non-underdog John Lennon: “Imagine all the people / Livin ‘life in peace”.
I wish you a harmonious, peaceful day.

I warmly greet you
you
Hans-Jürgen Jakobs
Senior editor

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