Before the SPD leadership retreat, Juso chair Philipp Türmer urges his party to adopt a tougher stance. In a guest op‑ed for the “Tagesspiegel” Thursday edition, Türmer writes that the SPD must “fight the class struggle and win”.
He argues that capital gains do little to strengthen the social security system or to increase the general tax base. “The flat 25 % capital gains tax is far lighter than the burden on mid‑income work earnings” the chair of the SPD’s youth wing says. He points out that large corporations shift their profits until nothing remains to tax, while skilled workers nearby dutifully pay corporate tax. The 25 % tax on capital gains was introduced under former finance minister Peer Steinbrück.
Türmer also denounced “effortless heirs”. He notes that “lowly taxed profits that have grown into vast fortunes are either marginally or not taxed at all when inherited”. While workers pay multiple taxes from earnings and consumption, super‑rich heirs are only taxed when a tax adviser errs. The clash between labor and capital, he claims, has never been more palpable. He accuses the SPD of ignoring distribution conflicts for too long while cultural battles have distracted from many people’s everyday realities.
He says the focus has now shifted “again to distribution” calling this a good development. For the SPD, this offers a chance to renew its mandate and to firmly represent workers’ interests.
Türmer charges the coalition partner CDU/CSU with perpetuating the class struggle. “The class struggle is already here. It is pursued by a union that talks about social partnership only occasionally, but in practice seeks no balance of interests” he writes. The union represents the interests of a small group of employers against 46 million employees. He reiterates that the class struggle must be fought and won by the SPD, and that a social democracy that is brave enough to take the lead in this conflict is the SPD of the future.