Consumer advocates are voicing concerns that policymakers are insufficiently addressing the everyday economic anxieties felt by citizens. Ramona Pop, Director of the German Association of Consumer Organizations (VZBV), expressed this sentiment in an interview with the Tagesspiegel newspaper, highlighting a growing perception that political focus has shifted away from the concerns of ordinary people.
Pop attributed this disconnect, in part, to the dominance of major geopolitical crises, which have overshadowed domestic issues. She specifically criticized the government’s failure to deliver on promises regarding relief from electricity taxes.
Furthermore, Pop called for more robust measures to counteract rising food prices, which she noted have increased by over a third since 2020. Her proposals include mandatory labeling for misleading packaging (“mogelpackungen”) and the establishment of a price observation agency, modeled after the system currently in place in France, to scrutinize profit margins within the food industry.
“An increasing number of people are resorting to overdraft facilities to cover their living expenses” Pop stated. “This situation is untenable and demands immediate attention from policymakers”.