Wants a referendum

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The leader of the German left-wing alliance BSW, Sahra Wagenknecht, is toying with the idea of an Austrian-style pension system. She is calling for a referendum: "The citizens should decide: Casino or Austria? Speculating on the stock market or a pension fund like in Austria, where all citizens pay in and pensions for those with long-term insurance are on average 800 euros a month higher than here," Wagenknecht told the German Press Agency in Berlin on Tuesday.

With her criticism, Wagenknecht was referring to the plans of the traffic light government to financially strengthen pension insurance through share investments. A state-financed capital stock is to build up at least 200 billion euros by the mid-2030s. This capital is intended to prevent the pension contribution from having to be increased too much. Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) and Labor Minister Hubertus Heil (SPD) want to permanently fix the pension level at 48% with their reform package.

Wagenknecht: Pensions belong "on a sustainable foundation"
"Pensions do not belong on the trading floor, but on a sustainable foundation," criticized Bundestag member and leader of the alliance Sahra Wagenknecht. She described the fact that Employment Minister Heil was implementing the FDP's pet project with the equity pension as a "social policy low point for the SPD".

The former Left Party parliamentary group leader referred to the referendum on old-age and survivors' insurance (AHV) in Switzerland on Sunday. The Swiss had voted in favor of a 13th pension payment per year. In Austria, there are even 14 payments, said Wagenknecht. In contrast, the German pension system is one of the weakest in Europe.