The €1,000 relief bonus, which failed to pass the Bundesrat, has been officially abandoned by Germany's coalition government. Union parliamentary group leader Jens Spahn (CDU) and CSU regional group leader Alexander Hoffmann stated in a communication to their parliamentary group that "the plan for the €1,000 premium is no longer being pursued," according to information obtained by AFP. The message reported on the results of Tuesday evening's coalition committee meeting.
The coalition has agreed on a comprehensive reform agenda moving forward. Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) will invite social partners to a dialogue with the coalition committee at the Chancellery in early June. "At a further coalition committee meeting before the summer recess, we aim to reach joint decisions on the currently essential reform topics of tax, labor market, pensions, and bureaucracy reduction as a package," the communication stated.
In a separate communication from SPD parliamentary group leader Matthias Miersch to members of parliament, which AFP also obtained, the recently failed relief premium in the Bundesrat was not mentioned. However, the planned meeting with social partners and the agreement on the further reform plan were referenced.
It had already become known earlier that the coalition committee agreed during its meeting "that the upcoming reforms should be brought forward in a coordinated manner in the coming weeks." A "working process has been agreed" for this purpose.
The coalition has also agreed to keep CO2 pricing stable in the coming year. The price per ton of emitted carbon dioxide will continue to remain in a corridor of €55 to €65, as it has been since the beginning of this year, according to coalition sources. Additionally, the leaders of the Union and SPD have agreed to complete the 2027 budget without drawing on reserves.
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