STORY: The Bundestag has decided to convert the Hartz IV basic security into a citizen’s allowance. Bundestag Vice President Katrin-Göring Eckhardt announced the result of the vote on Thursday: 385 voted ‘yes’, 261 voted ‘no’. There were 33 abstentions. For Federal Labor Minister Hubertus Heil, the law of the traffic light coalition is the largest welfare state reform in 20 years. “As the federal government, as a coalition, we are primarily pursuing two goals. Yes, it’s about people who are in existential need being protected reliably and as unbureaucratically as possible. But that’s not enough for us. We don’t want to only provide protection in times of need. We want to create opportunities for a self-determined life.” The increase in the standard rates had previously been decided by the Bundestag in a separate vote without a negative vote and two abstentions. Heil criticized that the Union does not want to support all parts of the reform. “If you walk around for weeks and say: ‘With the citizens’ income, work is no longer worthwhile’ – and at the same time only increase the standard rate, then there is a certain logical break, to put it very clearly. You will notice it yourself. But if it is on If there is still no majority in the Bundesrat on Monday, the federal government will call the mediation committee. Then we will have the opportunity to ensure that the citizen’s income comes into force on January 1st in a fast-track procedure.” The CDU MP Hermann Gröhe said that “priority for mediation” applies to the Union. “We’re sticking to the demands. But we have to get better at funding. We don’t want everything to stay the way you constantly assume it will. To this day you refuse any objective debate about the fundamental flaws in your law. At first I thought that was it the traffic light fear of arguments. Now I know – you are even afraid of our questions.” – “You won’t bring the welfare state forward with this arrogance. You will fail with this arrogance.” With the reform, a single adult should in future receive 502 euros per month for living expenses and thus 53 euros more. The Federal Employment Agency (BA) has warned that a timely payment of the increase at the beginning of the year is not guaranteed if it is not clear by the end of November.