FDP politician: Discussion on financing the pension package necessary

Yesterday, the federal government introduced a draft law on pensions. The FDP-led finance ministry helped to draft it. Today, the plans are being questioned again – by the FDP.

After the Federal Cabinet’s decision for a new pension package, several FDP politicians criticized the plan and called for improvements. “So that (…) our grandchildren can also rely on an efficient pension system, we want to significantly strengthen the role of ‘generational capital’ in the future,” said FDP parliamentary group vice-chair Lukas Köhler to the newspapers of the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland. Therefore, “the question of the financial viability of fixing the pension level” will still have to be discussed in the Bundestag.

Young Liberals: Package will not come without concessions

The chairwoman of the Young Liberals, Franziska Brandmann, expressed similar views. in the ZDF-heute journal: Contrary to what FDP leader Christian Lindner claims, yesterday was not a good day for pensions. “I am sure that the FDP faction will make some improvements in the parliamentary process, and I call on them to do so,” said Brandmann. The FDP has made concrete proposals – for example on the share pension. “And if the SPD does not come to us on this, then the second pension package cannot come about.”

The second pension package is a core social policy project of the traffic light coalition. The central component is a so-called generation capital, with which the state is to invest billions in the capital market. This is intended to dampen the increase in pension contributions that employees and employers have to pay.

With the “generational capital”, the FDP has succeeded in demanding a capital-funded approach to statutory pensions. The SPD, on the other hand, implemented its election promise of a stable pension: the pension level of 48 percent is to be secured initially until 2039.

Lindner: “Achieved more than in Coalition agreement stands”

After the cabinet decision, it is now the turn of the Bundestag and Bundesrat. However, the statements from the FDP indicate that there could still be heated debates here – not only with the opposition but also within the traffic light parties.

FDP leader and Federal Finance Minister Lindner, whose department had drafted the bill together with the SPD-led Ministry of Labor, had expressly praised the Pension Package II yesterday. The FDP had “achieved more in the negotiations than was stated in the coalition agreement,” he said.

At the same time, however, he also indicated that the FDP has further demands: Pension Package II is only a precursor to a pension package III, IV or V, said Lindner. The introduction of generation capital was “a good day for pensions”, but further efforts were needed to limit pension contributions in the 2030s.