First visit to Paris: Lindner relies on a tandem with France

Federal Finance Minister Lindner and his French colleague Le Maire praised the close cooperation at their first meeting. The two politicians did not want to discuss a difficult topic until dessert.

During his inaugural visit to Paris, Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner emphasized that he wanted to continue working closely with France on financial issues. “The Franco-German tandem will remain essential for the further development of the European Union and the European Monetary Union,” said Linder on his first trip abroad as finance minister. France and Germany did not always share the same ideas at the beginning of projects, said Lindner. “But the special character of our relationship is defined by our ability to find consensus in the end.”

The fact that the G7 presidency of Germany and the EU presidency of France will coincide in 2022 opens “a window of opportunity for progress”: for example with regard to the economic recovery in Europe after the corona pandemic, the global vaccination campaign or the introduction of fair tax rules worldwide.

Time to compromise

Both sides tried to minimize possible conflicts. “France is striving for solid public finances,” emphasized Bruno Le Maire, who had reiterated the demand for more flexible EU budget rules shortly before Lindner’s arrival. But new rules are “not in a hurry,” said Le Maire. “We will listen to all member states, and I’ll start with Christian Lindner.”

Lindner showed understanding for the French demands for massive investments. “We are aware of the importance of public investments,” said the FDP politician. “We should not only look at the budget rules, but also at the tax policy,” he added.

Praise for supplementary budget

Le Maire described Lindner as a friend and emphasized that he would work well with him – just as he had done with his predecessor Olaf Scholz. He praised Lindner for the supplementary budget it had put in place for billions in investments in climate protection and digitization in Germany. Investments led to more growth and ultimately to healthy public finances, said Le Maire.

A sticking point of the debate could be the so-called taxonomy. France is in favor of classifying investments in gas and nuclear power as “sustainable” at EU level. That’s not the only thing. On the other hand, the federal government is rather hostile to this. You save the topic for dessert if you’ve already had a drink together, said Le Maire.