Within the SPD’s Bundestag caucus, members are pushing back against a proposed overhaul of the pension system that would disadvantage the statutory pension.
SPD social‑policy spokesman Bernd Rützel told the “Rheinische Post” that the statutory pension will remain the foundation of old‑age security: “It is reliable, stable and has carried us through many crises”.
Rützel, a member of the Bundestag’s Social Affairs Committee, added that while many Germans depend solely on the statutory pension, only a small minority in Germany can actually set aside wealth for retirement safety. “The SPD’s aim is to make sure people have a decent standard of living after a long working life, not to hand profits to insurance and investment companies” he said.
The pension reform commission is expected to present its proposals in the middle of the year. “Political feasibility will have to decide the final outcomes” Rützel emphasized. “With me, there will be no higher retirement age, because most people simply cannot afford that. For them, it would mean a pension cut”.
At the start of the week, Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) announced a “paradigm shift” and a “readjustment” of pension policy, calling for a greater role for occupational and private retirement schemes.
