Given the AfD’s record-breaking polling figures, Andrea Römmele, vice-director of the Hertie School in Berlin, warned the German government about continued delays in reforms, demanding instead a comprehensive reform plan. Speaking to “Bild” magazine, Römmele suggested that the government still has a chance to change its trajectory, but time is running out with the next elections in September. She stressed that the Chancellor, the CSU leader, and the SPD leaders must present a unified major reform agenda that offers a positive vision for Germany’s future; only then could they counter the AfD.
Römmele added that democracy requires a positive vision for the future, which the federal government currently lacks, even despite several initial reform successes. She cautioned that this absence of vision creates the impression among voters that the government is incapable, playing automatically into the hands of the AfD.
Echoing the need for fundamental change, Reint Gropp, President of the Institute for Economic Research Halle (IWH), told “Bild” that genuine and effective reforms are the best way to reduce the AfD’s polling numbers. However, Gropp pointed out that the government still lacks the courage to undertake radical measures, specifically citing the need for a noticeable tax reduction. He emphasized that such a cut must materialize by January 1st and must particularly alleviate the financial pressure on incomes between 50,000 and 60,000 annually, as these households are currently overtaxed.
According to Gropp, this tax decrease should benefit everyone; broad relief is necessary to trigger a critically needed economic stimulus. He urged the Minister of Finance to bridge any resulting budgetary gaps by achieving savings in current subsidies and funding programs.
