Green Party leader Felix Banaszak is campaigning for a higher retirement age. “The actual working‑life span must rise” he told Spiegel, adding that this would require more rehabilitation and health protection measures, as well as a tightening of early‑pension options. However, he also stressed that people should be able to retire without steep cuts if health truly prevents continued work.
Banaszak pointed to Germany’s increasing life expectancy. “Couldn’t we consider spending some of the extra years back in employment? That’s an idea worth examining” he said.
He further argued for expanding coverage of the statutory pension scheme to include groups such as elected officials, new civil servants, and freelancers. The Green leader also promoted the permanent stabilization of modest and medium‑size pensions through investment income and, if necessary, supplementary tax resources.
