SPD Chair Lars Klingbeil has called on opposition leader Friedrich Merz to jointly pass economic relief measures. “We don’t have time to wait until May or April, depending on when the new government takes office, but rather Mr. Merz can take concrete action now” Klingbeil said in the ARD program “Report from Berlin”.
Klingbeil added: “I appeal to Mr. Merz and I urge him to take responsibility as opposition leader to push through the packages for the economy now. The SPD is ready to lower energy prices now.”
According to Klingbeil, promoting economic growth is one of the key issues of the coming time, requiring accelerated investments, lower energy prices, resolving the skilled labor shortage, and many things to be simplified and less bureaucratic in the country.
CDU leader Merz, however, rejects cooperation with the SPD. When asked about the possibility of lowering energy prices before the federal election, he said in “Report from Berlin”: “That’s a path we will definitely not take, simply because there is no budget for it.