The German government has changed its budget plans for 2027 by billions of euros immediately before the final deliberations; the largest single item is a loan to the Federal Employment Agency, which rises by three billion to 8.2 billion euros. This emerges from the draft for the so-called finalisation session of the Bundestag Budget Committee, which the Finance Ministry under Lars Klingbeil (SPD) sent out late on Monday evening and which is available to the Süddeutsche Zeitung. The committee intends to put the finishing touches to the budget planning this Thursday, 12 November.
The draft comprises 1136 pages and contains all changes since the budget draft was adopted in the summer. The reason for the higher Federal Employment Agency loan is the comparatively high number of unemployed people, which according to the government’s forecast will remain almost unchanged in 2027 at an average of just under three million. Although the economy is growing again for the first time in years, according to the Süddeutsche Zeitung such an upturn only shows up on the labour market with considerable delay.
Support for electric cars is also becoming more expensive than thought, having developed, according to the finalisation draft, “significantly more dynamically than assumed when it was conceived and in the original needs planning”. The funding sum for 2027 rises from just over 800 million to 1.72 billion euros. The total volume of the programme initially remains unchanged; funds for later years are merely brought forward.
The federal contribution to the health fund is being cut further, but not as sharply as initially planned: in 2027 it will be 13.15 billion euros instead of 12.5 billion. This is made possible by the new tax on sugary drinks, which is to bring 650 million euros into the coffers. Funding for energy-efficient building renovation also rises from just under 12.6 billion to more than 12.9 billion euros.
One problem child remains the D-LBO armaments project, which is intended, among other things, to equip the Bundeswehr with digital radios. The allocation for next year rises from 709 million to 909 million euros. The purchase of warships of the F126 frigate class also continues to cost money: 350 million euros are now earmarked in the budget for procuring alternative ships.
Not all expenditure adds to the total: according to the Süddeutsche Zeitung, some items have specific offsetting financing, while others are financed through the still-existing budget reserve. Finance Minister Klingbeil has to admit that his budget planning, at least on paper, breaches Germany’s stability rules. He is nevertheless likely to get around additional savings requirements.
