Despite his reservations regarding the continuation of the fuel discount, Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder (CDU) indicated that further measures to dampen fuel prices remain on the table. Speaking to the news channel “Welt” Schnieder stated that depending on how prices develop, it may be necessary to react further, though he did not specify what these measures might be. These potential actions could be more targeted than previous interventions.
The Minister noted that the fuel discount had already been limited to two months alongside other measures, and it is set to expire at the end of the month. “We are observing the situation. How is the situation developing? How are the prices developing? What can we do? What must we do? We are in discussions and debates about all this” he explained.
Schnieder criticized the expectation that the state must cushion every crisis situation, yet he did not rule out providing further state aid-including a short extension of the fuel discount. “In Germany, there is a situation where it is expected that the state must intervene in every crisis. And then we quickly run out of our options. That is something one must objectively admit. The fuel discount alone currently costs 1.6 billion euros. We cannot continue that indefinitely. Nevertheless, it may be necessary to react further depending on the circumstances”.
Schnieder acknowledged that demands for extending the fuel discount were coming from state premiers and political allies, such as Berlin’s governing mayor Kai Wegner. However, he emphasized the need for continued evaluation. “We still have to look at it: what can we do and what do we want to do about it? I mean, this naturally costs the federal government the most money. I understand the state leaders who say, ‘Just keep paying, we won’t be affected by this.'” Instead of expensive subsidies funded by the federal government for every citizen, Schnieder suggested discussing diversified solutions, stating, “We do need to look at what else we can do and what we might need to make more targeted”.
