Germany’s Social Democratic Party (SPD) is firing up the class struggle rhetoric. Two influential party organisations have submitted internal position papers demanding higher inheritance taxes.
After months of discussions about reforming Germany’s social welfare system, the junior coalition partner of Chancellor Friedrich Merz would like to shift the focus of debate onto the “rich” rather than the “poor”.
The SPD’s youth organisation Jusos has submitted a resolution to be adopted at a congress in November demanding the reintroduction of a wealth tax as well as higher inheritance taxes for large fortunes.
The 17-page edict – which was leaked to news outlet RND today – reads: “The rich and especially the overly rich must finally pay their fair share … The contradiction between capital and labour threatens to destroy the democratic and social constitutional state.
“Disappointment destroys trust and causes people to turn away from democracy.”
The Jusos – one of the most left-wing sub-organisations of the SPD – also criticises its own ilk, writing: “This financial elite, which has become entrenched over recent decades, is the result of neoliberal policies that have also been pursued by the SPD since the years [of SPD chancellor Gerhard Schröder].”
But it is not just the party’s left-wing fringe that is pumping up the “eat the rich” rhetoric.
The SPD’s Seeheim Circle – a “Conservative-leaning” grouping of SPD members that includes finance minister Lars Klingbeil – has also submitted an internal paper demanding reform of inheritance taxation – in the form of higher taxes for “the rich”.
“It cannot go on like this,” MP Parsa Marvi, a member of the Seeheim Circle, told RND, demanding the abolition of inheritance tax “privileges” for company assets.
The two motions are primed to set the SPD on a collision course with the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Chancellor Merz’s party. The CDU has repeatedly ruled out inheritance tax hikes, instead promising higher tax allowances and no burdens on the substance of bequeathed family businesses.
The tax debate adds one more headache for the German Government. In a survey by pollster Insa for newspaper Bild am Sonntag, 49 per cent of respondents said they expect the government to fall apart before its term ends in 2029. Only 32 per cent said they believed the coalition would hold until 2029.
In the same survey, citizens were also asked who they would currently vote for. The right-wing Alternative for Germany party (AfD) remains the strongest force with 26 per cent, while Merz’ CDU is down to 24 per cent.
