Criticism grew after Lindner’s comments on the connection between migration and child poverty. The Minister of Finance is playing off the protection of children against integration measures by the parents, explained the Education and Training Association.
In the discussion about the planned basic child security, Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner is increasingly coming under criticism. His statement about a connection between child poverty and migration caused outrage among welfare organizations. “I think it’s unspeakable if the finance minister is now starting to play off poor children from Germany against the children who had to flee to us with their families from the Ukraine,” said Ulrich Schneider, general manager of the Paritätisches Gesamtverband, the “Stuttgarter Zeitung”. .
Lindner had expressed doubts about the concept of basic child security from Family Minister Lisa Paus, with which the Green politician wants to combine services for families and at the same time increase them. “There is a very clear statistical connection between immigration and child poverty,” Lindner said at the weekend.
“Does this help them transfer more money into the account?”
Families who have immigrated to Germany since 2015 are particularly affected by child poverty, said the FDP politician. Child poverty in Germany has declined significantly “in the originally German families”. He would like to discuss how these children and young people can best be helped. Above all, you have to invest in the parents – with language support, integration and further education.
The traffic light government has been discussing the financing of basic child security for weeks. In response, Paus vetoed the passage of Lindner’s “Growth Opportunities Act,” which provides billions in tax breaks for companies.
“Affront to children affected by poverty”
Of course, special offers are needed for immigrant families and it is also right that parents should be enabled to get a job, said the managing director of the parity. “But that shouldn’t be an argument for leaving children in poverty.” The impression is created that Lindner is trying to prevent basic child security as an effective tool against poverty, Schneider told the Funke media group.
The head of the Education and Training Association, Gerhard Brand, also told the “Stuttgarter Zeitung”: “The initiative by Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner is an affront to children affected by poverty.” Playing off the financial security of children against integration measures for the parents does not do justice to the problems. “Basic child security versus language course: It’s not that easy,” emphasized Brand. Both are important. “Fighting poverty needs a wide range of offers.”
“The basic child security is a very important socio-political project of the federal government. It must – well funded – come as soon as possible,” said Doreen Siebernik, board member of the Education and Science Union (GEW). Lindner only sparked a “fog candle discussion”.
Siebernik emphasized that the consequential costs for a failure of basic child security are many times higher than if you invest in families and children now. This is also shown by a study by DIW and Diakonie Germany on the consequences of child poverty. Children affected by poverty therefore have a higher risk of developing health problems and becoming unable to work than children from economically strong families.
More citizen income recipients without Germans citizenship
Figures from the Federal Employment Agency (BA) actually show an increase in the number of children without German citizenship who receive Hartz IV or citizen benefits. While their number was around 305,000 in December 2010, it was around 884,000 in December 2022. According to the BA, around 275,500 Ukrainian children and young people were the largest group to receive citizen benefits in March 2023. By far the second largest group were children and young people from Syria.
Unlike asylum seekers, Ukrainian war refugees have direct access to the German social system, which explains the recent sharp increase. However, the trend was already evident before the Russian attack on Ukraine, for example with Syrian refugees.
The BA numbers go back to an AfD request. It also shows that in the period from 2010 to 2022 the number of children and young people with a German passport who received the corresponding social benefits fell: from around 1.37 million in December 2010 to around 895,000 in December 2022. According to the BA, the value for March 2023 is 1.02 million.
Median income has shifted downwards
However, these figures do not prove that there is a connection between migration and child poverty, emphasized Marcel Fratzscher, President of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW). WDR.
After all, statistically speaking, anyone who has less than 60 percent of the median income is poor. “If you now have a lot of people who are even poorer, who are new to the country, then the median income will shift downwards.” This means that there are many German families who are no longer considered poor because many poorer families have joined them, explained the economist Fratzscher.
“No one would doubt that integration into the labor market is the best way for parents to earn well and for their children not to live in poverty.” At the same time, he made it clear that this would be a long process.