It was already 2:45 a.m. when Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the two Prime Ministers Stephan Weil from Lower Saxony for the SPD-governed states and Boris Rhein from Hesse for the CDU-governed states appeared in front of the press and announced what they had agreed on . Quickly summarized in key words: A per capita flat rate of 7,500 euros per refugee that the federal government pays to states and municipalities, reduced benefits for asylum seekers, a payment card for benefit recipients, the exploration of asylum procedures outside the EU, more border controls in Germany, faster asylum procedures , better job opportunities for asylum seekers with good prospects of staying. In addition: an acceleration of the planning and approval processes for infrastructure projects and small steps to finance the Deutschlandticket.
Scholz calls the compromise “historic”. But not everyone involved sees it that way. An overview of the reactions:
Voices from the Union
CDU leader Friedrich Merz at a press conference with representatives of the NRW CDU: “I expressly do not agree with the classification as historical. That was a step forward. We will only be able to judge next year whether it leads to results that could then be called historical . The crucial thing is that the numbers have to come down and whether they will really go down with these measures, I have a big question mark.”
CDU General Secretary Carsten Linnemann in the ARD morning magazine: “This paper is of course not nearly enough to curb illegal migration in Germany. We need a system change so that only people come who already have a positive asylum decision.” Like other Union politicians, Linnemann calls for asylum procedures in third countries. Merely examining such procedures, as the federal and state governments have decided, is not enough, “it’s all too soft.”
Voices from the countries
Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil (SPD): “The fact that we managed to get pretty much in the middle under these conditions is really worth an exclamation point at this early hour of the morning.”
Hesse’s Prime Minister Boris Rhein (CDU): “It is also clear that a path consists of many steps and of course further steps must follow.” Irregular migration must be stopped and he believes that “the decisions we have made will be very helpful in this endeavor,” although from the point of view of a Union Prime Minister it could be more.
Hendrik Wüst (CDU), Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia: “It’s a first step, but it’s not a big deal. If you look at the MPKs we’ve already had on the topic, you get the feeling that what’s pressing locally always arrives with a delay in Berlin . One has the impression that the debate here is a year behind the situation.”
Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) wrote on X shortly after the agreement that night, formerly Twitter: “Positive: Something is moving! Negative: That’s not enough yet”. In the morning, Söder, also on X, adds an extensive list of requirements, which Bavaria and Saxony submit to the federal government. It says, for example: “The aim must be to ensure that those who are not entitled to protection can be effectively rejected at the German border. (…) Incentives to immigrate and social pull factors to Germany must be reduced by national Social benefits for refugees should be reduced to European levels.”
Voices from the traffic light coalition
Finance Minister and FDP leader Christian Lindner writes to X: “The restriction on benefits for asylum seekers can lead to savings amounting to 1 billion euros. This not only relieves the burden on states and municipalities. This measure also reduces the attractiveness of the German welfare state.”
FDP parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr: “The fact that the states have now agreed on payment cards nationwide is a milestone in German migration policy. As Free Democrats, we have been pushing for this point for a long time, and it’s good that this proposal is now being implemented.”
Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) says: “The Germany Pact on Migration lays important foundations to be able to act in the face of major challenges and solve concrete problems. It is important that all democratic parties work together here. This is not a given and is hard-earned.”
Katharina Stolla, co-head of the youth organization Green Youth: “The proposed tightening of asylum law is a catastrophe and is part of the shift to the right in migration policy. In particular, the cuts in benefits and the outsourcing of asylum procedures are inhumane, unnecessary and possibly illegal.”
Reactions from cities and municipalities
Burkhard Jung (SPD), Vice President of the German Association of Cities: “This wrangling is terrible between the federal and state governments. I know the states represent us, but in the end we in the cities and municipalities are responsible. We belong at the table. I never tire of demanding that.”
Gerd Landsberg, General Manager of the Association of Cities and Municipalities in the newspapers of the Funke media group: “We warn against delaying the implementation process that is now necessary and downplaying the right goals again.” He particularly praised the agreed introduction of a nationwide payment card, the acceleration of asylum procedures and the extension of the period until asylum seekers can receive citizen’s benefit. Landsberg sees the federal government’s willingness to pay 7,500 euros per year per asylum seeker as a “significant relief” for the municipalities. However, one should not be under the illusion that a significant decline in immigration numbers can now be expected in the short term.
Voices from the Left and AfD
Left parliamentary group leader Dietmar Bartsch in the Germany editorial network: “It’s a pitch-black day, especially for municipalities, mayors and district administrators. Germany is undoubtedly at its limit. Therefore, the municipalities need maximum support. The costs should no longer be borne by ordinary taxpayers. Higher taxes for billionaires and multi-millionaires are necessary, not least to deal with the refugee crisis. That would also be a contribution to social peace.”
Bernd Baumann, parliamentary director of the AfD parliamentary group: The “almost panicked attempts” by the Union and SPD to reach agreement on migration on a public stage are due to the AfD’s electoral successes. “It’s us who are forcing them to finally try something, at least.”