2024-01-07 13:16:30
Germany: traffic light coalition gives in on agricultural diesel and vehicle tax
Norbert Lehmann, AGRARHEUTE*
© Niels Reisinger/Agra-Europe
For Federal Minister of Agriculture Cem Özdemir, the disproportionate burden imposed on agriculture and forestry in the context of budgetary consolidation is therefore ruled out. However, he will have to save an additional 100 million euros in his ministry.
The traffic light coalition wants to give in on agricultural diesel and the vehicle tax for farmers. The green license plate remains in effect. But agricultural diesel must be phased out gradually. And Agriculture Minister Özdemir must save another 100 million.
The federal government finally wants to renounce the introduction of a vehicle tax for agricultural and forestry machines. This is the result of an agreement reached today (January 4, 2023) between Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck and Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner.
However, the coalition does not want to completely renounce the elimination of the tax advantage for agricultural diesel. The deletion just doesn’t have to be done all at once. Instead, the federal government is planning a gradual reduction to give farmers time to adapt.
In 2024, the exemption of 21.48 euro cents per liter will be reduced by 40%.
In 2025 and 2026, a further reduction of 30% is planned, each time, so that the quantities consumed in 2026 will no longer be subsidized.
The partial reimbursement of the energy tax in 2024 for quantities consumed in 2023 remains unchanged.
Farmers have announced a week of action for Monday January 8, 2024 with massive protests against the tax increases initially planned by the coalition.
Minister of Agriculture Cem Özdemir: “The green license plate remains in force”
© Niels Reisinger/agrarEurope
Mr. Cem Özdemir during a press statement in Berlin on the traffic light coalition agreement on agricultural diesel and vehicle tax.
Federal Minister of Agriculture Cem Özdemir appeared at the last minute before the press in the afternoon. “We – the SPD, the Greens and the FDP – have agreed that the vehicle tax exemption for agricultural and forestry vehicles will continue as before. The green license plate remains in effect. The disproportionate burden imposed on agriculture and forestry as part of the necessary budgetary consolidation is therefore no longer relevant,” said Mr. Özdemir.
But the truth is that there were also, within the framework of the protests, actions which clearly exceeded the objective and which have no place in a democratic debate, he added. He even more thanked all those who expressed their discontent in a clear manner, but always peacefully and within the framework of the rules of the democratic game.
(Source)
Mr Özdemir must save another 100 million euros
The corrections made by the coalition leaders to the initial economic plans mean that the 2024 federal budget will be reduced by around 2.5 billion euros less than what was initially planned.
The lower savings are expected to be offset by revenues from the offshore wind tender and budgetary margins. However, Federal Minister Özdemir will also have to make additional savings in his department. The agreement concluded by MM. Scholz, Habeck and Lindner plan to save an additional 100 million euros in the budget of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture in 2024. The compromise does not yet say where this sum will come from. For example, it would be possible to make additional cuts in the task of common interest “Agricultural structures and coastal protection” (GAK) or in subsidies for agricultural accident insurance.
The Bundestag budget committee is due to finalize the budget consolidation plans in mid-January. At the latest, it will be known where Minister Özdemir will have to save the 100 million euros.
Resistance of North Rhine-Westphalia, Lower Saxony and Bavaria against weakened economic plans
The Länder are already opposing the reduced economic plans.
The Minister of Agriculture of North Rhine-Westphalia, Silke Gorißen, continues to demand the complete reversal of the abolition of the exemption for agricultural diesel.
Bavarian Finance Minister Albert Füracker expressed the same opinion. He said the removal of the agricultural diesel tax rebate was completely unacceptable, even as a progressive measure. Reimbursement of agricultural diesel must be maintained permanently.
Lower Saxony Minister of Agriculture Miriam Staudte said that maintaining the vehicle tax exemption was a great success. But she cannot be satisfied by the fact that aid for agricultural diesel is reduced in several stages and disappears completely by 2027. From her point of view, this deadline is too short to develop alternatives and completely do away with fossil fuels.
The Farmers’ Union considers that the improvements are insufficient
In a first reaction, the president of the DBV, Joachim Rukwied, considered the adjustments made by the federal government to the planned reductions insufficient. “This can only be a first step. Our position remains unchanged: both reduction proposals must be taken off the table,” Rukwied said. The sustainability of agriculture and the question of whether national food production is still desirable are clearly at stake.
The Farmers’ Union therefore wants to maintain the week of action. The Westfälisch-Lippischer Verband association also sticks to the action week and sees the current developments regarding the federal government’s budget plans as a first step in the right direction. “We strongly welcome the planned continuation of the tax exemption for agricultural vehicles. The fact remains that our farms cannot accept further cuts in agricultural diesel,” we read in the press release.
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* Norbert Lehmann has worked as a specialist journalist for more than 25 years. After studying agricultural economics in Bonn, the Agra-Europe press and information service was his first professional step. He made frequent stays in Brussels as a correspondent. Subsequently, activities within the Handelsblatt publishing group, in scientific public relations as well as as a freelancer. He has worked at dlv since 2012, most recently as head of the Management & Markt section in the AGRARHEUTE editorial office.
Source: Traffic light coalition gives in to agricultural diesel and vehicle tax | agrarheute.com
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