Schwerin (dpa/mv) – The federal relief packages to deal with the energy crisis led to a controversial debate in the state parliament in Schwerin on Thursday. The AfD, which had requested the debate, spoke of a “drop in the ocean”. FDP parliamentary group leader René Domke contradicted this: “These are not drops, they are a whole extinguishing train,” he said, but at the same time conceded that not all hardships could be cushioned with state aid.
Finance Minister Heiko Geue (SPD) reminded that with the third federal relief package that has now been decided, the aid totals 95 billion euros. The first two packages worth 30 billion euros would have brought relief of half a billion euros in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. But further steps are necessary. “We now have to make progress on the energy price cap so that medium-sized businesses can get through the winter,” said Geue. Speakers from the parliamentary groups also made it clear that they consider further state aid to overcome the energy crisis to be unavoidable.
The AfD’s renewed call for an end to the sanctions imposed on Russia after the invasion of Ukraine caused criticism. This harmed the German economy, while Russia had found new buyers for its raw materials and was generating higher revenues for gas and oil, said AfD MP Stephan Reuken. Speakers from the other factions made it clear that the sanctions were a reaction by the international community to the illegal war against Ukraine. With their attitude, the AfD only wants to stir up further unrest, it said.
