Despite warnings from three CDU state premiers in Eastern Germany regarding the proposed abolition of the non-contributory pension at age 63, the new chair of the Union parliamentary group in the Bundestag, Thorsten Frei (CDU), has firmly rejected further modifications to the pension reform. “No, I truly don’t see any room for negotiation on this,” he told the TV channel “Welt” on Monday.
Frei emphasized that the group should not believe itself superior to the experts and politicians who were involved in the Age Security Commission. “There was genuinely concentrated professional expertise, both political and scientific,” he stated, noting that the challenge lay in reconciling diverse interests. He questions the rationale for trying to arrive at “smarter” decisions now, arguing that any outcome would essentially be balanced the way the Age Security Commission handled it.
The CDU parliamentary leader admitted that the opposition from the Eastern German state premiers concerning the fixed non-contributory pension at 63 had somewhat surprised him. He noted that within the party and the parliamentary group, the general understanding was that the commission’s proposals would need to be adopted essentially in their entirety.
He further explained that the reform is not designed to generate savings but rather to increase pension contributions. Consequently, he believes an offset measure is essential. “There are of course also cost-dampening elements involved, including the non-contributory pension at 63,” Frei pointed out. He argues that removing individual components would constitute a major error, potentially causing the whole structure to fail.
Frei expressed hope that he might succeed in changing the minds of the critical state leaders once the draft proposal from the Federal Ministry of Labour is submitted. While acknowledging that individual elements might warrant discussion, he stressed that every responsible politician must maintain an overall view of the measures and, if necessary, accept things they do not completely favor.
According to Frei, there is no need for new fundamental debates. The outcomes of the commission have already been approved by the Federal Party Presidium and further endorsed by the Coalition Committee. Therefore, he frankly sees no reason to revisit such fundamental questions at a time when the official draft has not even been presented.
