Enlarge image
SPD leader Saskia Esken
Photo: dts News Agency / IMAGO
The budget dispute is putting a strain on the traffic light coalition. Saskia Esken is now optimistic. The SPD leader expects a solution in the near future.
"I am confident that the three parties will now come to an agreement, and we have also made significant progress," she said on Monday in the ZDF "Morgenmagazin". Something is going to happen now. And then we will have a basis to continue governing," Esken continued. So far, the parties have signalled that they want to come to an agreement.
There is currently a gap of 17 billion euros in the budget for the coming year. The traffic light leaders around Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) and Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) had postponed talks on Sunday evening in the Chancellery. Initially, nothing was known about the course of events.
Previously, FDP parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr was also confident that the budget gap could be closed. He considers the budget dispute to be solvable, he said on Deutschlandfunk. "The situation is not processed," says Dürr. It is a matter of finding a solution in peace. "Nothing is at risk, on January 1 all the statutory benefits that are already there will be paid out." It would not be a problem if the federal budget were not to be adopted until next year.
The FDP politician also clearly committed himself to the traffic light coalition. Dürr was reacting to speculation that the FDP could consider leaving the government in view of the unresolved budget dispute.
asc/dpa