Baden-Württemberg: Minister of Finance warns the federal government: "Sink or die" is not possible

Heilbronn (dpa/lsw) - In the debate about a successor to the 9-euro ticket, Baden-Württemberg's Finance Minister Danyal Bayaz sharply criticized the federal government's approach.

Baden-Württemberg: Minister of Finance warns the federal government: "Sink or die" is not possible

Heilbronn (dpa/lsw) - In the debate about a successor to the 9-euro ticket, Baden-Württemberg's Finance Minister Danyal Bayaz sharply criticized the federal government's approach. In an interview with the "Heilbronner Voice" the Green politician said on Wednesday: "What I really have a problem with is that the federal government is once again coming around the corner with proposals and - I'll say it a bit flippantly - the states tilts his feet and says, "Do it or die." The federal government wants the states to pay and says: "Watch how you get it baked." Bayaz continued: "We've let it go a couple of times but we won't put up with it in the future."

Bayaz spoke out in favor of investing in the expansion of local public transport rather than continuing to finance the 9-euro ticket. The question is: "Do we want to subsidize public transport or do we invest in the structures?" He is for the latter. He was open to an understanding with Berlin. "We really need a compromise between the federal and state governments to find a viable joint solution."

The traffic light government is working on another relief package. The SPD parliamentary group in the Bundestag had already proposed a 49-euro monthly ticket. Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) had shown himself to be convinced that the 9-euro ticket could continue to exist if the federal states took part. Then the federal government would only have to bear a fraction of the costs. The federal government took over the costs of 2.5 billion euros for the campaign from June to August.