BSW politician Sahra Wagenknecht strongly criticized the potential raising of the retirement age to 70. Speaking to the press, Wagenknecht dismissed the idea as “absolutely heartless pension cuts” adding that it was “completely detached from reality” for anyone to work until the age of 70. She warned that any further reduction in benefits would disproportionately affect those who rely solely on state pensions and have no means of saving significant amounts privately.
Wagenknecht announced her intention to address these pension plans during the upcoming state elections in Saxony-Anhalt, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Berlin, stating that the elections in the East would be transformed into a de facto public referendum on the reform. According to her, “none of this may ever happen”.
The controversy stems from a report in the newspaper “Bild”, which allegedly details expert recommendations for gradually raising the retirement age from 67 to 70, effective starting in the early 2060s-a change that would impact those born after 1990. Furthermore, the report suggested progressively lowering the pension level from 48 percent to 46 percent after 2031. However, sources noted that members of the commission have since officially denied reaching any agreement.
In her critique, Wagenknecht added that these proposed measures would cause the Social Democratic Party (SPD) to lose representation in Saxony-Anhalt. She concluded by challenging the CDU party leaders in Saxony-Anhalt and Berlin, Sven Schulze and Kai Wegner, as well as the SPD Prime Minister in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Manuela Schwesig, to give their positions on the matter.