Greenpeace sharply criticized the coalition’s proposed relief measures for motorists. According to Greenpeace mobility expert Lena Donat, the current federal government package is steering the country further toward a “fossil fuel infarction”. She stated that the government’s policies are “as sensible as lowering the price of lifebuoys when a ship is sinking”. Instead of distributing short-term palliatives, she argued that responsible policy must focus on achieving independence from oil and gas as quickly as possible.
Donat explained that responding to high oil and gas prices with lower energy taxes “wastes millions of tax euros daily, primarily benefiting high earners with large gas guzzlers”. She reiterated that immediate independence from fossil fuels is the necessary step. She urged the government to help people escape the “fossil trap” suggesting alternatives such as a mobility allowance. “Every new combustion engine, every other gas heater sold today increases our dependence on fossil fuels” Donat added.
Furthermore, the German Environmental Aid organization opposed the federal government’s plans to develop domestic gas reserves. According to the organization’s federal director, Sascha Müller-Kraenner, re-engaging in national gas production “offers no short-term benefit”. He also argued that even in the long term, only select gas industry companies would profit. Müller-Kraenner concluded by stating that “the federal government is thereby acting in the service of the gas lobby”.
