The Federal Court of Auditors keeps a close eye on the traffic light government and criticizes the budget draft by Finance Minister Lindner and his ministry extremely sharply. They accuse Lindner of window dressing, saying that the “real net borrowing” is four times higher than that stated on paper.
The Federal Court of Auditors has accused Finance Minister Christian Lindner and his ministry of concealment in the federal budget. “The true state of federal finances is not clear from the draft budget,” says a report available to several media outlets. The “real net borrowing” is four times higher than the budget at around 78 billion euros. There are only 17.2 billion euros to book.
The Court of Auditors criticizes the considerable expenditure of the special funds, for example for climate protection and transformation or digital infrastructure. Although these special funds run outside the normal budget and are therefore not included in the official budget, the economic plans are usually attached to the budget draft. In addition, the examiners calculate the extensive dissolution of the reserve originally saved for refugee costs.
They indirectly accuse the FDP politician Lindner of window dressing when he speaks of compliance with the debt brake. “The debt rule is adhered to on paper and thus suggests a fiscal policy aimed at limiting new borrowing. However, because of the actually much higher net new debt, its effectiveness is severely limited,” says the report.
The draft budget for 2023 will be presented to the Bundestag next week. The sharp criticism by the Federal Court of Auditors will give the opposition parties plenty of arguments to blame the government and its budget. “The situation of state finances and the federal budget is highly dramatic,” said the Union’s budget spokesman, Christian Haase. A return to the debt brake is all the more important.
