ERFURT (dpa-AFX) – The tax cut passed in the Thuringian state parliament by the opposition CDU with the help of the AfD continues to cause a stir. The state chancellery of Thuringia’s Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow (Left) accused the CDU of having made targeted agreements with the AfD to implement tax cuts. The CDU assured that there had been neither agreements nor cooperation with the AfD. Federal Chairman Friedrich Merz said on Sunday in the ProSieben/Sat.1 program “:newstime Spezial”: “There were no discussions, no negotiations, no agreements.” Meanwhile, a new survey shows that Thuringia could be heading towards an extremely difficult government formation process after next year’s state elections.
The CDU was able to push through a reduction in property transfer tax on real estate purchases in the state parliament on Thursday because the AfD, the FDP and non-attached MPs agreed. The vote sparked nationwide criticism. The Thuringian AfD is classified and monitored by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution in the Free State as definitely right-wing extremist. The red-red-green government does not have its own majority.
Head of the State Chancellery Benjamin-Immanuel Hoff (Left) replied in the Berlin “Tagesspiegel” (Saturday) to the question of whether he had any evidence of concrete agreements. “The CDU, FDP and AfD coordinated specifically on Thursday,” he said. “At the same time, our own items were taken off the agenda so that the real estate transfer tax could then be dealt with. All three jointly made the recommendation for a resolution in the budget committee. The AfD made it publicly clear in advance that it would support the project.” He added: “There have been agreements that have been evident for some time.”
Thuringia’s CDU general secretary Christian Herrgott accused Hoff of spreading lies. “The CDU Thuringia makes independent policies and sensible suggestions for the people.” Red-Red-Green have achieved majorities several times with votes from the AfD.
The decision with AfD votes is not without controversy in the Union either. Criticism came from Schleswig-Holstein’s Prime Minister Daniel Günther, who spoke on ZDF of a “serious wrong decision”. The CDU member of the Bundestag Kai Whittaker wrote on the platform
Merz said on ProSieben/Sat.1 about Günther’s criticism: “This is an individual opinion in the CDU. There is no one else who shares it, even presented it publicly, the way he did it.”
The CDU vice-chairman Jens Spahn urged an end to the discussion. “The biggest favor you can do for the AfD in particular is to continue this debate like this for three more weeks, then it will have another two percent more,” he told the “Frankfurter Rundschau” (Saturday).
Federal Justice Minister Marco Buschmann (FDP) defended the Liberals’ voting behavior. “If a democratic party like the CDU submits a proposal that corresponds 100 percent to the party decisions of the FDP, and we agree to it, it is difficult to scandalize,” he told the VRM daily newspapers and portals.
The outrage continues in the camp of the SPD, the Greens and the Left. The SPD chairwoman Saskia Esken referred to the CDU leader’s statement in the “Stuttgarter Zeitung”https://www.finanzen.net/”Stuttgarter Nachrichten” that the “firewall” stands by the AfD: “How much is the word Friedrich Merz in the CDU is still worth it, and where is the outcry within the Union?”.
A representative survey conducted before the tax decision by the Erfurt opinion research institute Insa on behalf of Funke Medien Thüringen shows the dilemma faced by the Thuringian parties when forming a new government after the state elections next year. Accordingly, no government can be formed without or against the CDU. The party would therefore be faced with the decision of achieving a majority with either the Left or the AfD./geh/DP/nas