Germany's federal government stands divided — once again. And the reason is money. The cabinet needs to agree on its proposal for the 2025 budget, before submitting it to the parliament, the Bundestag, for debate after the summer recess.
However, things are being held up as the center-left coalition of Social Democrats (SPD), Green Party and the business-oriented Free Democrats (FDP) fundamentally disagree over where savings can and should be made.
In Germany, the federal government and the 16 federal states are obliged to balance their books. The federal government is practically prohibited from taking out loans that exceed 0.35% of economic output in total. This so-called "debt brake," enshrined in the constitution, is upheld and protected by Finance Minister Christian Lindner and his FDP party. The SPD and the Greens, however, argue that in times of crisis, the state has to borrow more to be able to invest.
Pollster infratest-dimap conducted its monthly "Deutschlandtrend" survey of 1280 eligible voters this week and found that 54% of respondents want to keep the "debt brake" unchanged. 40% percent would like to see the provision reformed.
If the "debt brake" is upheld, the ministries will have to cut back their spending plans by around €30 billion ($32.2 bill.) according to latest estimates.
The pollsters asked voters how they would........