In the past six months, the demonstration has not been able to accommodate a quiet desk.In addition to the "anti -polar right demonstration" mentioned in the German democracy (January 24, January 24, January 24, January 24th, the "Anti -Right Demonstration", another widespread attraction was to protest the demonstration of agricultural subsidies. In early January, in early JanuaryOutbreaking throughout the virtue.
The reason for theThe government to reduce subsidies is Caichi. At present, the budget of the 2024 fiscal year will increase by 2.5 billion euros (about S $ 3.6 billion) from last year.Before the deadline, the German government also claimed to have a financial gap of 5 billion euros in 2025.However, the German Supreme Court pronounced in November last year to restrict the government's misappropriation of the subsidy of the crown disease.The fiscal space of 900 million euros, but it was furious.The German government, which had been internal and external, was therefore more divided. The President of the Social Democratic Party, Steainmier, rarely criticized the government and pointed out that politicians should go to the countryside to see the actual situation and believe that the government is inadequate.
On January 8th, German farmers' tractors launched a demonstration nationwide to block the road.The author's town of Guding has a sharp horn sound at about 7 am that day.I woke up in my sleep and looked out of the window, and found that the long tractor lineup meandered along the state road.There are small lineups like a small towns like Guding Gen, and big cities across the country are self -evident.In the capital Berlin, the second largest city Burger, and Cologne, the tractor team appeared on the same day and blocked the surrounding channel. The famous landmark Brandenburg Gate has been occupied by farmers the night before.
German economic issues are accompanied by the government's fiscal crisis. Since the outbreak of the epidemic and the outbreak of the Russian and Ukraine War, the German economic performance has not been very good. The total domestic production value (GDP) of 2023 has decreased by 0.3%year -on -year.It was the only major world economy in the decline last year.According to the famous German University of Munich's Leibniz Ifu Institute of Economics, the German economy will decline by 0.2%in the first quarter of this year.This is also a more direct impact.
It directly triggers a fiscal crisis, including about 4 billion euros supporting Ukraine last year, and it is planned to double this year to 8 billion euros. It is also necessary to increase the national defense budget and follow NATO countries.At the same time, local fiscal deficits also increased rapidly due to the problems of Ukrainian refugees and inflation.The Federal Bureau of Statistics announced the statistics at the end of last year, pointing out that the official deficit of 7.3 billion euros in German city and county officials (excluding Berlin, Hamburg, and Buxi Meimei) appeared.In the first half of 2022, the deficit was only 1.6 billion euros.
All these are the reasons why the German government's finances are facing crisis.What is even more dissatisfied with farmers is that the government has greatly increased the expenses of responding to refugees and supporting foreign wars, but ignoring the lives of farmers who are in economic recession and their lives have risen rapidly.This contrast made farmers unable to endure the government's reduction in agricultural subsidies.Although facing the huge pressure of farmers, the Minister of Finance Christian Lindner just responded to the peasants of the Berlin demonstration lightly, saying that putting money on the Russian and Ukraine War was "to invest in our security", and said, "I can't helpIt is promised to provide you with more subsidy funds from the federal budget. "
The response of the Minister of Finance is only part of the facts.This is also because the Green Party that has strongly supports environmental protection in the ruling alliance.Among these reduced subsidies, tax benefits for agricultural diesel and machinery and vehicles are mainly targeted at.As a power agricultural vehicle, diesel is naturally emitted with more greenhouse gases. The government has also forced farmers to transfer the green energy machinery and vehicles by reducing tax discounts for agricultural diesel and machinery and vehicles.However, the government did not fund or provides preferentially to stimulate farmers to use the full support of green energy machinery and vehicles to give farmers a worse impression, and believes that it is just a political product of "environmental protection".
The most direct fuse of the German fiscal crisis is related to environmental protection.In November last year, the Constitutional Court ruled that the reign of 60 billion euros during the period of the crown disease was unimchaolized to re -distribute it to the "Climate and Transform" to the Constitution.However, if this investment cannot be maintained, the Green Party will not be able to explain to voters. In the end, the co -government can only compromise and move the knife to the more vulnerable farmers, otherwise the joint government will face a crisis of disintegration.
At present, the support of the Prime Minister of the Social Democratic Party has fallen to 19%, which is the lowest score of German Prime Minister since 1997. Halberg, the Vice Premier of the Green Party in the ruling alliance, has fell the most, down 6A percentage point, only 24%left.It can be seen that agricultural subsidies are only the tip of the German economic crisis and fiscal crisis. The German United Government is not easy to maintain by trying the parties in the Russia and Ukraine War, energy crisis, and refugee issues.The current fiscal gap is not even more loser. If it cannot be filled, it will cause a crisis of governance. It may be originally scheduled to be held in the election next year.
The author is a Hong Kong media in Germany