Actually, the Bundestag should vote on the energy efficiency law on the last day before the summer break. But that went wrong: Because not enough MPs were present in the afternoon, the session had to be ended.
The last vote in the Bundestag before the summer break failed. Because there were not enough MPs in the plenary hall in the afternoon, a law with new requirements for increasing energy efficiency could not be passed.
According to the rules of procedure, the Bundestag only has a quorum if more than half of its members are present, i.e. at least 369 MPs. The AfD faction doubted that this quorum had been reached. That is why Bundestag Vice President Aydan Özoguz (SPD), chairing the session, ordered a so-called mutton jump. The parliamentarians go through two doors and are counted. The result: 241 deputies.
The number of those actually present could have been a little higher, because Özoguz then stated: “Members of the AfD are now coming in who didn’t take part in the mutton jump, so as not to be counted, I assume. Of course that’s really not Precisely parliamentary behavior that you are displaying here.”
“That makes you think”
With the Energy Efficiency Act, the compulsion to save energy should actually be anchored across all sectors from industry to buildings. By 2030, final energy consumption should fall by 26.5 percent compared to 2008. For comparison: Between 2008 and the Corona year 2020, the savings were less than six percent.
The draft law contains regulations for savings in federal and state public buildings, for industry and for data centers. However, there are no specifications for individual industrial companies, households or buildings.
Özoguz ended the last session with the words: “That makes you think, also for the summer break.” She wished the MPs that they could still recover a little and come to rest. She also wished them “that you also think about how we might be able to jointly counter attacks on parliamentarianism in the future”. The Bundestag meets for its next session at the beginning of September.