Berlin, Germany – The Federal Minister of Development, Svenja Schulze of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), expressed confidence that her faction will vote in favor of the debt package, negotiated between the Union, SPD and the Greens, at the German Bundestag on Tuesday.
Schulze told RTL and ntv that she is “very, very sure” about the outcome, as the package is a crucial decision. It not only addresses the country’s debt but also sends an international signal and assumes responsibility for security policy. Moreover, the package is a vital foundation for the coalition negotiations between the Union and SPD. “It simply has to work tomorrow” she said.
On the topic of climate protection, Schulze does not solely attribute it to the Greens. In the initial outline of the debt package plan, which was only negotiated between the CDU/CSU and SPD, climate protection was not mentioned. However, the SPD minister emphasized that the topic is important to her party as well. “Climate protection is not a topic for the Greens only. Climate protection is a topic for all parties” she said, adding that the SPD had, for instance, included the pursuit of the previously set climate goals in the negotiations.
When asked if she took CDU-Kanzlerkandidat Friedrich Merz’s statement that he would take climate protection seriously, Schulze replied, “We will ensure in the coalition that climate protection remains a topic.” The climate crisis is a global challenge and Germany will have to continue investing in climate protection, she said.