2024-03-15 06:58:25
The head of the economists considers the pension reform to be completely inadequate. SPD Labor Minister Heil had to listen to strong criticism.
For Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD), homeopathy is like dowsing. Economist Monika Schnitzer apparently considers the traffic light pension reform to be similarly effective. “That’s not even a drop in the ocean. That’s homeopathic,” said the chairwoman of the Advisory Council on Thursday evening on “Maybrit Illner” about Finance Minister Christian Lindner’s (FDP) plans for a stock pension.
- Hubertus Heil (SPD), Federal Minister of Labor
- Franziska Brandmann, federal chairwoman of the Young Liberals
- Monika Schnitzer, economics
- Verena Bentele, President of the VdK Social Association
- Hermann-Josef Tenhagen, “Financial Tip”
The so-called generation capital is expected to generate an average of ten billion euros annually from 2036 in order to keep pension contributions stable. Given the around 800 billion euros in pension spending in 2045, that won’t matter much, said Schnitzer. “I don’t think the package is worth adopting. I think it needs to be improved a lot,” criticized Franziska Brandmann, federal chairwoman of the Young Liberals (July), on the talk show. She definitely meant her party leader too.
“Illner”: Criticism of Lindner from the FDP
“I believe he did that because he really wanted to enforce generational capital,” said the July boss, explaining Lindner’s reform with Labor Minister Hubertus Heil (SPD), who was also a guest on “Illner”. “I also understand that he’s trying to do that, and that’s definitely difficult with the Social Democrats, so I give him credit for it,” said Brandmann, referring to Lindner. “But I think the bottom line is that it’s an additional burden and therefore not a good package.” The young liberal spoke of around 3,000 euros in additional pension contributions per year for an average income.
“This is actually a political reform, not an economic reform,” complained “Finanztip” editor-in-chief Hermann-Josef Tenhagen. The two ministers did not touch on the actual adjustment screws for a secure pension, namely ensuring that more work is done in Germany – through additional skilled workers, more work by women and later retirement. “There is too much slender footing for a reform package,” said Tenhagen and criticized the planned investment amount in “generational capital” with the words: “It’s really too little.”
Why doesn’t Lindner invest more in the stock pension? Illner wanted to know from Heil. “I didn’t stop him,” the Social Democrat said, assigning responsibility to his cabinet colleague. “It’s a compromise, no question about it,” Heil admitted about the reform. However, the accusation of gambling on stock pensions is nonsense: “It’s a very safe construction.” The form of a foundation also protects the money from being used by later governments for other purposes.
Heil: You can rely on a pension
Heil defended the pension reform. “If we didn’t act, the pension level would drop from 2027,” he said on “Maybrit Illner”. But later generations would also have more money in their pockets. “The reality for most employees is that they can rely on the statutory pension,” asserted the Labor Minister. He rejected Schnitzer’s demand to decouple pensions from wage developments and only allow them to rise as fast as inflation. This would mean that pensioners would fall behind the rest of society in terms of purchasing power, said Heil.
Verena Bentele, President of the VdK Social Association and SPD member, regretted that the self-employed, civil servants and members of parliament still do not have to pay into the statutory pension insurance. This could also have supported the system. Pension insurance is a reliable foundation for many people, Bentele emphasized the importance of state pension insurance. But she also doubted the purpose of the stock pension.