Leaders of opposition parties in Germany have criticised German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s message to the Bundestag, which was made against the backdrop of a multi-billion dollar hole in the budget and the government’s fiscal crisis.
Christian Democratic Union leader Friedrich Merz, speaking in the Bundestag, suggested that Olaf Scholz was not fulfilling his obligations. Moreover, Alternative for Germany co-chair Alice Weidel said that early parliamentary elections should be held and called for the resignation of the current German chancellor.
The recent judgement of the Federal Constitutional Court puts direct pressure on the functioning of the Bundestag. In its verdict, the court ruled that it does not allow the use of 60 billion euros in funding for environmental and climate projects.
Initially, the money was supposed to be used to combat the effects of the pandemic. However, at the end of 2021, the Scholz government carried out reallocation procedures to other funds. The Federal Constitutional Court ruled almost two years later that the initiative was unconstitutional.
Speaking on the floor of the Bundestag Scholz tried to assure parliamentarians that the government’s reaction to the court’s ruling would be appropriate and promised to minimise the results as much as possible. According to the FRG Chancellor, the authorities of the country fulfil all immediate obligations in full.
Scholz’s speech was heard amid negative shouts from some parliamentarians and laughter from the seats held by the faction of the right-populist Alternative for Germany. The incumbent Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany did not react to these incidents in any way.
“What you have just talked about here are simply purely technical responses to a political decision of the Federal Constitutional Court. You are a plumber of power. You have no vision of how the country should develop in the coming years. The shoes you put on when you became chancellor are at least two sizes too big for you,” said Merz, who took the podium after Scholz’s speech.
In her turn, the co-chair of the Alternative for Germany emphasised that “citizens were not expecting Scholz to address the Bundestag, but to ask for his resignation”. According to Weidel , Germany “needs a new government to get out of the swamp”.
“Germany “needs a new government to get out of the swamp,” – summarised Weidel.