Opposition politicians have criticized Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s call for young people to begin saving early for retirement.
Grün’s deputy parliamentary group leader, Andreas Audretsch, told the “Rheinische Post” on Monday that a private pension can be a useful supplement, but that it requires fundamental reforms. He added that €50 a month is a substantial amount for many, and that Merz’s urging would be more credible if it guaranteed that the money actually reached pension funds.
Merz’s remark came after he concluded the Baden‑Württemberg CDU’s election campaign in Ravensburg, saying: “We must make sure people begin to save for their old age early enough”. He went on to claim that starting with €50 a month would yield a six‑figure pension when one retires at 65 or 68.
Sarah Vollath, the pension spokesperson of the Left, sharply rebuked the Chancellor’s stance, saying, “Every week the Chancellor demonstrates his complete lack of understanding of young people’s reality”. “For millions, especially in their early years, €50 is a huge amount; many cannot even sustain themselves on that sum for a week”.
Ulrike Schielke‑Ziesing of the AfD pension spokesman echoed the criticism, stating that Merz is surrendering to the challenge of making the pension insurance system future‑proof. She added, “Moreover, the threat against the pay‑roll financing system is a vote of distrust toward our own economic and labour‑market policy”.
