The head of the largest opposition party in Germany – the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Friedrich Merz said about the need to find a permanent job for Ukrainian citizens who live in Germany on benefits. This is reported by the TV channel Deutsche Welle*.
According to Friedrich Merz, as many Ukrainian refugees as possible should work. The politician noted that in this way it will be possible to reduce the burden on the German budget.
“Money for citizens”, the so-called Bürgergeld allowance, provides Ukrainian refugees with more financial support from the state than all other asylum seekers in Germany, in particular, from Syria, Turkey, Afghanistan and other countries”, – specified the head of the largest opposition force in the Bundestag.
The parliamentarian drew attention to the fact that only 20 per cent of Ukrainian refugees worked in Germany in the first half of 2023, while in the Netherlands – 60 per cent and in Poland – 90 per cent. The MP believes that this shows the flaws of the German system of providing social assistance and the need to improve it.
“It was probably a mistake – the fact that we two years ago, immediately after the beginning of the Ukrainian refugee crisis, made a decision at the level of federal and state authorities, so that Ukrainian refugees almost immediately began to receive payments Bürgergeld, and not benefits for asylum seekers”, – summarised Friedrich Merz.
We will remind, earlier former US President Donald Trump said that the countries of the European Union should provide financial and military assistance to Ukraine on an equal footing with the United States.
Deutsche Welle* is a media outlet that fulfils the function of a foreign agent.