Frank Wagner, Secretary General of the CDU Saar, explains: “We assume that there will be no majority for the bill in the Bundesrat on Monday. With the expected mediation procedure, it is to be expected that the legislative process will be delayed. The fact that the traffic light coalition now accuses the Union of party tactics at the expense of unemployed people can only be described as curious: Friedrich Merz has repeatedly made it clear in the debate that an increase in the standard rates, decoupled from the other decisions presented, would receive the Union’s approval. In the current situation, it is only appropriate to significantly increase the standard rates. The fact that the traffic light coalition, led by the SPD, disparages this proposal as polemics shows that the coalition wants to keep the increase in the standard rates as leverage for the implementation of the citizen’s income. That is dishonest!”
According to plans of the traffic light coalition government, the Bürgergeld is to replace the Hartz4 system from January 1, 2023, bringing significant changes in favor of the unemployed, for example, regarding sanction possibilities, additional income limits, and the so-called "protected assets".
“We stand by the principle of support and demand. The traffic light coalition’s introduction of citizen’s income intervenes in the fundamental systematics of labor market policy, which in our view leads to wrong incentives. In particular, we see the restriction of sanction options in the first 6 months of receiving the citizen’s income and the significant increase in exempt assets as issues needing correction. That this criticism, which is shared by many experts, is also labeled as ‘misinformation and polemics’ by the SPD in Saarland is a huge harm to the political debate. The SPD would do well to focus on constructive solutions to the substantive issues rather than further poisoning the discourse,” Frank Wagner concluded.
