(new: MPK proposal)
BERLIN (dpa-AFX) – Brandenburg’s Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke (SPD) is pushing for greater restrictions on immigration and is proposing, among other things, to switch cash payments to asylum seekers to benefits in kind. “In order to at least somewhat reduce the incentives to migrate to Germany, I think switching from cash payments to benefits in kind is a suitable first step,” said the Social Democrat to the German Press Agency.
North Rhine-Westphalia’s Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst (CDU), also with a view to the recent state election results, said that unresolved migration problems had explosive social impact. Wüst said in Düsseldorf that he had urged Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) to tackle the issue a year ago before conflicts arose over it. “Little has happened, unfortunately too little.” This drives voters into the arms of the AfD.
So far, the demand for a switch to benefits in kind has come primarily from the Union parties and the governing party FDP. The coalition partner the Greens has so far been against it and points to too much effort. The local associations also resisted this for fear of too much bureaucracy.
According to Woidke, several state leaders want to propose a payment card at the Prime Minister’s Conference this week in Hesse. “This is not just the proposal from Brandenburg, but it is a proposal that we will discuss with our colleagues at the Prime Minister’s Conference next Thursday and Friday,” he continued in Potsdam. “Germany as a whole must send a signal here.”
What Green Party politicians want
Green Party domestic politician Julian Pahlke said: “I assume that the discussion from the election campaign about ineffective measures is now over and solutions are being worked on.” First, all work bans for refugees should be abolished. The municipalities would also need significantly more, reliable financing beyond the six-month cycle of the Prime Minister’s Conferences. The admission of asylum seekers from Italy via the voluntary EU solidarity mechanism, which was suspended by Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD), must be resumed.
Brandenburg’s Prime Minister Woidke is under pressure because irregular entries across the German-Polish border are increasing significantly, the population’s discontent is growing and he wants to pass a state election next year. The AfD is ahead in the polls in the state. The SPD suffered devastating defeats in the state elections last Sunday in Bavaria and Hesse.
Whatever Woidke wants
“We now need a significant reduction in migration numbers for Germany on the one hand and a stronger fight against smuggling crime on the other,” said the SPD politician to the German Press Agency. That is first and foremost the task of the federal government. “That’s why the federal and state governments have to come together quickly, because we need a joint effort to finally find solutions to the migration issue.” This Friday, the development is likely to be a topic at the Prime Minister’s Conference.
The head of the Brandenburg government also called for people without the right to remain to be “returned to their home countries more consistently.” “To do this, we have to consistently implement the rules that are already there,” said Woidke.
On Thursday, the Bundestag is expected to discuss a motion from the Union entitled “Introduce payment cards – consistently implement the benefit-in-kind principle”. “The incentives for irregular entry into Germany must urgently be reduced,” said the parliamentary group’s social policy spokesman, Stephan Stracke, to the dpa. “A key reason why so many asylum seekers want to go to Germany is our high social benefits compared to the EU.” The CSU politician does not want to accept arguments from the Greens that a switch to benefits in kind would result in a high level of bureaucratic effort. He says: “Issuing a card would actually be easier in the long run than spending cash over and over again.”
What the citizens want
An Insa survey for the “Bild” newspaper also shows that there is great dissatisfaction with the current migration policy. The 1,004 respondents were given five topic areas in which they were asked to say whether the federal government should continue as before or take a new course. The strongest demand was for a change of course in migration policy: 59 percent voted for it (continue: 18.5 percent). This is followed by the desire for a change of course in housing policy, which 52 percent supported (continue: 20 percent).
What experts think is necessary
The chairman of the Expert Council for Integration and Migration (SVR), Hans Vorländer, also sees it that way. “I believe that the traffic light government must also ensure changes in migration policy so that the parties that make it up do not come completely under the wheels next year,” said the chairman of the independent panel of experts at the dpa.
Vorländer attributes the great desire for change to the fact that municipalities complain about their burden in accommodating and caring for refugees, as well as to the political discourse: It is sometimes suggested that there are simple solutions that can greatly reduce the number of people seeking protection, said he.
An important adjustment that the government of the SPD, Greens and FDP must adjust in order to bring more control into immigration is the desired reform of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS). This provides for asylum checks at the EU’s external borders and also returns from there for some of those seeking protection. The SVR chairman warned: “If the CEAS reform is not achieved before the European elections (in June 2024), then a further strengthening of right-wing extremists and right-wing populists in Europe can be expected.”
SPD does not want barriers at the borders
“If we don’t get this done in the next few weeks with a common refugee policy in Europe, then we will face times of sealed borders,” said SPD chairman Lars Klingbeil. But there is now a chance to overcome the “deep division” in migration policy./abc/DP/ngu