»The earth is heating up, schools are falling into disrepair and Germany is one of the EU’s worst performers when it comes to fast internet. We are investing too little in our country, ”it says. “We want to make the debt brake in the Basic Law contemporary – to enable the urgent investments.”
The demand is not new, but it is now becoming clear what a crucial role it plays. The program can only work if the debt brake is loosened. Reform is not just a requirement, but a requirement for much of the rest. But this requires an amendment to the Basic Law, i.e. a two-thirds majority in the Bundestag . The votes of a governing coalition will probably not be enough, and it will not work without the Union.
Each election program is subject to two major reservations. First: the formation of a coalition. Second, government practice. It lists what should be done if the coalition partner goes along and everyday life does not interfere. The Greens are now adding a third reservation: the support of the opponent.
Now the Greens are not literally calling for the debt brake to be abolished; social benefits, for example, should not continue to be covered by debt. But that is what it boils down to if they want to enable debt for investment.
The program assumes what it cannot do by itself
The party is promising 50 billion euros in additional investments per year, which is roughly a doubling, says party leader Robert Habeck . It also wants to generate more tax income, through a wealth tax for example (from two million euros and with exceptions for companies) and an increase in the marginal tax rate from 100,000 and then from 250,000 or 500,000 euros annual income (with an increase in the tax exemption). But the investment program is to be financed largely through debt.
Because, to put it in a clever way, Germany is already running into debts “that are not on the books, but endanger our prosperity.” The Greens are putting debt in the book against debt in reality.
The program lives from conditions that it cannot create itself.
That is brave because the Greens are giving themselves up to their political opponents. Because it means going into the election campaign with a program that, even after successful coalition negotiations, cannot be promised for large parts that would be feasible.
This expresses a basic idea of this program: starting from the necessary. Even if the necessary is politically improbable, such as an alliance with the Union to remove the debt brake.
