For a long time, the FDP resisted an excess profit tax - now it should come, but not by that name. According to Chancellor Scholz, in order to finance the relief for citizens, "accidental profits" should be skimmed off from energy companies in the future. If not at EU level, then by federal law.
The traffic light coalition wants to finance an electricity price brake for the citizens by skimming off profits from energy companies. "Chance profits" at companies due to the high energy prices would be skimmed off, said Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the presentation of the federal government's third relief package.
Initially, the focus is on an agreement at European level, but the coalition partners are also prepared to "quickly implement such a so-called excess profit tax at national level alone," said Scholz. So far, this proposal had failed due to resistance from Finance Minister Christian Lindner and the FDP.
The background is that the traffic light coalition wants to introduce an electricity price brake for basic consumption. "Private households can be credited with a certain amount of electricity at a reduced price (basic consumption). Households are thus noticeably relieved financially and at the same time there is an incentive to save energy," says the decision paper.
Scholz emphasized again: "You'll never walk alone, we won't leave anyone alone." The Chancellor spoke of a "great and dramatic relief" on the electricity market. "So the first task is to use such chance profits to relieve the burden on the citizens."
Lindner emphasized that the third relief package could be financed without additional new debt. As planned, the federal budget for 2023 will respect the rules of the debt brake. No supplementary budget is necessary for the current year. "These measures are taking place within the previous budget plans of the federal government," he said.
Around 32 billion euros could be mobilized for the relief in the federal budgets for 2022 and 2023, said Lindner. The development of income and the "precautions already taken for the year 2023" allowed this. Then there is the planned skimming off of profits from energy companies, which Lindner put at a double-digit billion amount.
