Building Energy Act: Heat transition before the summer break! Or not?

Building Energy Act
Heat transition before the summer break! Or not?

Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen): “It is important to me that we can get started with renewable heat now”

© Christophe Gateau / DPA

The Building Energy Act (GEG) for heating replacement is to be passed before the summer break, the SPD and the Greens are pushing for it. The FDP is in no hurry.

Is the heat transition shaky? In any case, a lot has started to happen since the draft of the so-called heating law was published by the Ministry of Economics and Building. Robert Habeck’s Secretary of State, Patrick Graichen, the architect of the controversial amendment to the law, had to vacate his position in the Ministry of Economic Affairs because of compliance violations. The concrete design of the plans continues to cause a public slap and sting within the traffic light coalition, which is reflected in the election results and opinion polls. And in addition to differences in content, there are now also doubts about the schedule.

The change in the Building Energy Act (GEG), which means saying goodbye to purely fossil heating in houses and apartments, should be decided by the summer break. That’s what the coalition partners of the SPD, Greens and FDP agreed after their 30-hour meeting marathon at the end of March – and that’s how Habeck still wants it to be understood: “It has been decided several times”, stressed the Minister of Economics, shortly after he had left his Secretary of State Graichens announced. “It is important to me that we can get started with renewable heat now.” In other words, procrastination is not an option.

But a quick decision seems anything but agreed. The critics of the project, above all the FDP, obviously see their chance to soften or even postpone the controversial project. Michael Kruse, energy politician for the Liberals, demanded one at the weekend “new, realistic schedule”, also because Habeck had to find a new Secretary of State for Energy. Previously, FDP Vice Wolfgang Kubicki skeptical against a “swift parliamentary decision” – in view of the “clean-up work” in Habeck’s ministry, which could “potentially require much more attention from the minister”.

The FDP has “around 100 questions” about the Building Energy Act

In the meantime, Habeck has found a successor for the vacant post, like the first “Southgerman newspaper” reported on Monday that an agreement is still not in sight. Alone: ​​Since the agreement in the cabinet around four weeks ago, the booklet of action is no longer in the Ministry of Economics, but in the Bundestag factions. And there, the specific design of the GEG is discussed at length.

In particular, the FDP parliamentary group has concerns, so to speak, in dozens of versions: “Around 100 questions” have been put to the Minister of Economics, said General Secretary Bijan Djir-Sarai, who considers it “out of the question” to say goodbye before the summer break. It is not known whether Habeck was able to devote himself to the catalog of questions. In any case, the SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich was “annoyed” by the slowing down of the liberal coalition partner in introducing the heating law into the Bundestag, even though he ARD “morning magazine” repeatedly emphasized that the SPD also considered changes to the law to be necessary.

The day before, party co-leader Lars Klingbeil spelled out what still needs to be clarified from the point of view of the Social Democrats. Accordingly, the deadlines for replacing the heating system, social support and tenant protection, among other things, still raise questions, as was the case on Sunday in “Report from Berlin” (ARD) said. But: “As the SPD, we want the law to be passed in parliament before the summer,” so that it can come into force on January 1, 2024. The Greens are also pushing for this, but they also want to improve the draft law. The faction submitted concept beforewhich provides for greater social differentiation with higher state funding – and promptly met with criticism from the liberal coalition partner.

In short: there is a lot to be discussed – and time is running out. If the law is to be passed in the Bundestag by the summer break, the parliamentarians must reach an agreement by July 7th. Then the Federal Council will meet for the last time, and then again on September 29th.

Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) does not assume that “essentially major changes” will be made to the law, as he said Sunday on the sidelines of the G-7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan ZDF said. However, it was “completely okay to look, all questions have been answered, all concerns have been taken into account.” The chancellor also obviously assumes that the GEG is still being worked on – and paraphrased the former SPD parliamentary group leader Peter Struck, according to which no law leaves the Bundestag in the way the federal government introduced it.

That may prove to be a premature prophecy. Habeck will also see how resilient the agreements in the coalition are – or not, should the GEG not pass Parliament by the summer break. Meanwhile, the Greens should hope that the heated debate will cool down with a decision. The dispute had also caused losses in the state elections in Bremen – and could possibly cast a shadow on the upcoming elections in Hesse and Bavaria in October.


source site-3