The Germans named inflation, pensions and affordable housing as the most pressing issues for the new federal government, which will be formed after the February elections to the lower house of parliament – the Bundestag, according to a survey by the INSA institute for the Bild newspaper.
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According to 56% of Germans, the most important problem that the new government must deal with is inflation. In December this year it reached 2.2%. As the publication notes, inflation is not growing as quickly as it was, for example, in 2022, but the population is still concerned about rising prices.
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More than half of those surveyed (54%) are worried about the future of their pensions: while the Social Democrats, to which current Chancellor Olaf Scholz belongs, are calling for a pension to be legislated at 48% of wages, in the opposition and most popular bloc CDU/CSU oppose such a move.
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In third place on the list of problems that the new government must solve is housing – 51% of respondents want the new authorities to build more affordable housing, the demand for which, especially in large cities, is enormous.
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Germans also want the new government to stimulate economic growth, provide stable energy supplies and control migration, the survey shows.
The survey was conducted on December 18-19 among 1,005 Germans. The error is not given.
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Earlier, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier announced that he had decided to dissolve the Bundestag and call early elections for February 23, 2025.
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The proposal to dissolve parliament was sent to Steinmeier by Chancellor Olaf Scholz after the Bundestag, by a majority vote on December 16, lost confidence in his government. In particular, 394 of the 717 deputies who took part in the vote voted against the request for confidence in Scholz as Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, 207 voted for, 116 abstained.
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The vote of confidence was a consequence of the government crisis that Germany faced in early November after Finance Minister Christian Lindneries of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) was fired at the insistence of Scholz. Among the reasons for this decision, Scholz cited Lindner’s reluctance, as part of state budget planning, to simultaneously approve an increase in spending to support Ukraine and investing in the future of Germany. German media later reported that the FDP had been preparing a decision to leave the ruling coalition since September; such an outcome was discussed by trusted party members during a meeting at Truman’s villa in Potsdam, and the plan was called “D-Day”.
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According to polls, the most popular political force is the opposition bloc of the Christian Democratic and Christian Social Unions (CDU/CSU) led by Friedrich Merz with a rating of just over 30%, in second place is the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, with a rating of just under 20%, and the Social Democrats are only third with support around 15%.
