**Coalition Crisis: Tensions Rise in Household Committee Meeting**
The ongoing coalition crisis within the government has reached a boiling point as experts express strong criticism of the budget planning proposed by the Ampel coalition. Prior to the budget committee hearing in the Bundestag, experts have not held back in their scathing assessments of the government’s plans.
**Experts Sound Alarm on Budget**
Today, the Ampel coalition faces another hurdle as the experts present their positions on the 2025 budget in the budget investigation committee. The budget, as outlined by the SPD, FDP, and Greens, is under intense scrutiny. Thiess Büttner from the University of Erlangen, brought in as an expert by the Union, has raised concerns about the proposed expenditures of the Ampel coalition. The budget is set at nearly 489 billion euros, which is almost 37 billion euros higher than the previous plan. Additionally, the planned net borrowing has increased from 16 billion to over 51 billion euros, despite expected tax revenue decreases of 6.4 billion euros. In reality, the actual amount of borrowing would be even higher at 64.4 billion euros. The government’s use of accounting tricks has been flagged as a violation of a ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court.
**Constitutional Concerns**
Another expert from the Union, Hanno Kube from the University of Heidelberg, has also criticized the appropriation of billions of euros from the Economic Stabilization Fund as a violation of the constitutional provision. The financing plans for Deutsche Bahn have also come under fire, as converting subsidies into a loan with a repayment period of 34 years has been deemed problematic. This accounting maneuver is only permissible if it does not alter the federal government’s financial position, a point which Stefan Korioth from the LMU Munich doubts: “The unusually long repayment period shifts the financial adjustment for the federal budget so far into the future that it can hardly be considered financially viable within a medium-term financial plan.”
**Legal Battles Loom**
The risk for the federal government is evident: without a revision of the budget, the Union may once again take the matter to the Federal Constitutional Court and secure another legal victory against the Ampel coalition before the next election.
With the specter of legal challenges looming over the coalition, the government is under immense pressure to address the concerns raised by experts. The credibility and stability of the government’s fiscal policies are at stake, and swift action is needed to rectify the discrepancies in the budget planning. The outcome of the upcoming household committee meeting could have far-reaching implications for the coalition’s future and the country’s financial well-being.