The approval of the Federal Council is still pending.
The German Bundestag passed the Budget Financing Act 2024 on Friday, initially planned for December. This was prevented by the Federal Constitutional Court’s ruling on the debt brake in November. As a result, a crucial part of German raw materials policy was also on the back burner: the fund planned by Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck to support projects to secure resources at home and abroad. Initially, it was to be financed partly by unclaimed funds for the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. The state development bank KfW will receive one billion euros for raw materials projects. According to information from Bloomberg, KfW may provide details of its role in the government project on February 7, when the annual press conference occurs.
However, this project and, therefore, the entire budget is not in the clear entirely, as the approval of the other government body, the Bundesrat, is still pending. The Bundesrat could lodge an objection and appeal to the Mediation Committee. The Budget Financing Act should still be put on the Bundesrat’s agenda in an urgent procedure, which the CDU rejected yesterday (Thursday). The CDU/CSU-led federal states indicated a need for further discussion on the issue of tax concessions for agricultural diesel, which the law will gradually abolish. There were large demonstrations against this by farmers throughout Germany. The next plenary session of the Bundesrat is scheduled for March 22.
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