Franziska Brantner, the Federal Chairwoman of the Green Party, has sharply criticized the federal government for lacking determination following the recent cabinet meeting in Neuhardenberg. Speaking on the podcast “Berlin Playbook” by the news magazine “Politico,” Brantner noted that “nothing was decided,” only discussions took place.
She specifically criticized the handling of climate protection by Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU). Brantner remarked that the Chancellor only now claims the urgent need for climate action, suggesting that the government should have acted much sooner. She pointed out that it took the tragic toll of over 14,000 heat deaths and scenes of dry rivers before the government finally responded. Brantner demanded concrete steps instead, advocating that Germany must “stop being rich” (or relying on privileged status), halt energy industry plans that only inflate costs and maintain dependencies, and instead focus on innovation and leveraging its technological leadership. She stressed that both the federal government and the parliament have a current opportunity to act decisively.
Regarding the economic situation, Brantner expressed a cautiously optimistic outlook but called for increased pace. Concerning the recently improved economic figures, she stated that the existing measures-such as having 500 billion in special funds and unlimited defense spending-are “simply not enough.” She insisted that these funds must be invested “properly, in a European manner, and with maximum force” into industrial AI. Finally, she urged the coalition parties not to “disagree further” over the pension reform, demanding a more consistent fight against poverty among the elderly.
