Germany’s Finance Minister Christian Lindner and Economy and Climate Minister Robert Habeck, along with Chancellor Olaf Scholz, appeared in front of the Bundestag (Germany’s lower house of parliament) on November 15th, 2023. The government has stopped spending from the economic stabilisation fund for the year following a constitutional court ruling that took place last week.
According to a source close to the finance ministry, a ruling prohibiting the transfer of 60 billion euros in unused funds from the pandemic to green projects was issued. As a result, all spending that has not been used in 2023 is now blocked and requires the consent of the finance ministry. Credit authorisations for the economic stabilisation fund can no longer be used in 2023 under current legal conditions.
The budget committee had previously approved such spending, but now payments related to energy price breaks for this year are not affected. The economic stabilisation fund, which was established in 2020 to support businesses during the pandemic, has since focused on addressing the energy crisis. Handelsblatt business daily was first to report on this decision to block spending from the ESF.
The government is currently working diligently to address the implications of this court ruling and how it will affect spending from the economic stabilisation fund for this year. Despite this setback, payments related to energy price breaks for this year are still unaffected by the ruling.