BFederal finance minister Christian Lindner anticipates a “loss of prosperity” for people in Germany as a result of the Ukraine war. “The Ukraine war is making us all poorer, for example because we have to pay more for imported energy,” said the FDP leader to “Bild am Sonntag”. “Even the state cannot compensate for this loss of prosperity.”
However, the federal government will “cushion the biggest shocks”. That is why the broad middle will be relieved, the needy will be supported and the existence of threatened companies will be secured. “But since funding is limited, these measures can only be temporary.”
In view of an inflation rate of 7.3 percent in March, Lindner said: “I have serious concerns about economic development. Growth is falling, prices are rising.” The federal government is doing everything it can to avoid the risk of so-called stagflation. “In the long term, we will have to lay new foundations for prosperity. Germany must renew its growth model of a social and ecological market economy.”
Highest inflation rate in four decades
The last time the inflation rate in the old federal states was as high as in March was in autumn 1981, when mineral oil prices had also risen significantly as a result of the effects of the First Gulf War. Despite the crises, Lindner wants to comply with the debt brake again next year as planned.
When asked about it, he replied, “Yes. If there is no new catastrophe, the debt brake must be complied with.” That is what the Basic Law commands. “It must be possible to normalize the debt level before the end of this decade.”
Lindner admitted to having to “organize enormous funds and take on debt for them”. He works to ensure that the regular budget is solid beyond Corona and the Ukraine war. “I defend the debt brake of the Basic Law.”