Good thing wants to have a while: Bundestag discussed about debt brake!

Good thing wants to have a while: Bundestag discussed about debt brake!

Today, on March 6, 2025, the Bundestag is preparing for two special meetings on March 13 and 18. These special sessions were initiated by a third of the MPs, specifically the political groups of the Union and the SPD. Without a coordination in the Council of Elders, Bundag President Bärbel Bas has already invited to these special meetings. According to Article 39 of the Basic Law, such sessions can be convened if a third of the members require this.

The background of these special sessions are the efforts of the Union and the SPD to reform the debt brake and to introduce a special assets of 500 billion euros for infrastructure and defense. These changes to the Basic Law require a two-thirds majority in both the Bundestag and in the Federal Council. However, the new Bundestag, which emerged from the latest elections, does not offer such a majority, which is due to the gains of the AfD and the left. This means that the old Bundestag remains working capable of work until the new parliament is constituted.

Special questions and legal challenges

The AfD has already announced that the Federal Constitutional Court will file a lawsuit to take action against the decisions of the old Bundestag. It justifies this with the fact that the new Bundestag with its other majorities cannot work legitimate. At the same time, BSW boss Sahra Wagenknecht criticizes the plans as the "largest voter fraud" of the two major parties. In order to achieve the necessary two-thirds majority, the Union and SPD would be dependent on votes from the Greens or the FDP, whereby the FDP has already signaled to be ready for discussions regarding defense spending, but at the same time rejected the special infrastructive pot. The Greens are angry about the handling of the Union, especially by the Csu.

SPD boss Lars Klingbeil has clearly rejected that de facto border closures are made an option. Meanwhile, Union Chancellor Friedrich Merz is planning to instruct the Ministry of the Interior, to reject all illegal entry. In many of these conversations with the Greens and the FDP, the need for constitutional changes also becomes clear with regard to the debt brake and the special fund for military capacity.

financial challenges and the role of the AfD and left

The new federal government faces serious financial challenges that could make a loosening of the debt brake necessary. Reforms in this area, as well as the choice of constitutional judges, will in future require the votes of the AfD or the left. These two parties have gained 216 seats in the new Bundestag, which makes up more than a third of the MPs and thus means a blocking minority. Changes to the Basic Law, which require a two-thirds majority, are only possible under these conditions with the consent of these two parties.

The CDU has taken an incompatibility decision that excludes a coalition or cooperation with AfD and left. Friedrich Merz, the CDU party leader, has problems with constitutional changes in sight, but grants possible reform approaches with the old Bundestag. Tagesschau also reported that a new judge at the Federal Constitutional Court occurred. The controversial candidate Robert Seegmüller is the focus here, since the vote in the Bundestag is still pending.

The complexity of the upcoming reforms is reinforced by the more vacant post by judge Josef Christ, who leads his office on a temporary manner. Renate Künast from the Greens has already asked the Federal Constitutional Court for personnel proposals to conclude the legislative gap should be no choice. Radio Euskirchen analyzes that the current political climate and the upcoming decisions in the Bundestag could face major challenges.