EU faces criticism for backing track on fundamental pension policies
The ongoing dispute over the design of the basic pension in the grand coalition has taken a turn, with the Free Democratic Party (FDP) accusing the Union's parliamentary group of caving in during the negotiations. The FDP believes that the Union has not effectively resisted the grand coalition's proposals, compromising too much or failing to uphold stronger demands against the controversial bill proposed by Labour Minister Hubertus Heil.
The specific concerns revolve around the content and implications of Heil's proposal, which the FDP apparently views as problematic. However, the exact details of the bill's contentious points are not provided in the available information.
The FDP, who proposed their own pension reforms after the federal election, have expressed criticism towards the Union's handling of the basic pension issue in the grand coalition. Johannes Vogel, the FDP's spokesman on pension policy, stated that the "so-called economic wing of the Union has blown itself up as the saviour of a serious financing and now collapses like a deflated balloon." He further criticized that Heil's draft "almost completely misses the target and does not help hundreds of thousands of elderly poor women and men at all."
According to Vogel, the Union has given in to the grand coalition after more than a year of alleged resistance. He stated that over 90 percent of potential basic pension recipients are not even dependent on basic security in old age, and around three quarters of the 500,000 people who are dependent on basic security despite entitlements in the pension insurance in old age would not receive anything at all with this model.
In the midst of this dispute, Ralph Brinkhaus, the parliamentary group leader of the Union, has paved the way for Heil's controversial bill to be put on the Bundestag's agenda before the parliamentary summer break. The bill is expected to undergo only "small technical changes" according to reports.
The basic pension is a point of contention in the current grand coalition, with the CDU and CSU no longer insisting that Finance Minister Olaf Scholz (SPD) finance the basic pension with revenues from a financial transaction tax. The CDU and CSU are also no longer pursuing controversial contentious issues of the bill, especially the design of the income check for determining entitlement to the new benefit for future and current pensioners.
For context, Hubertus Heil, as Labour Minister, is known for pension-related reforms, often sparking political debate due to their financial and social impact. However, without direct statements or detailed analysis from the provided sources, the exact specific concerns about the controversial bill remain unspecified.
[1] Source: Handelsblatt [2] Additional context: The FDP has historically advocated for fiscal responsibility and market-oriented solutions, which may influence their critique of the grand coalition's proposals on the basic pension.
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