Pension reform: CDU and CSU are putting the brakes on pension insurance for members of the Bundestag

Berlin. The Union is slowing down the inclusion of members of the Bundestag in the statutory pension insurance, as demanded by the SPD. The pension commission not only recommended the inclusion of MPs in the pension fund, but also mentioned an alternative, namely an equivalent transfer, said CSU regional group leader Alexander Hoffmann on Tuesday in Berlin.

He warned that both paths are very complex. With the second option, a separate pension scheme may have to be created, which would entail parallel structures and additional costs.

However, a transfer with the same effect can also mean, for example, adapting the pension entitlements for members of parliament to the increases in the statutory pension. In any case, the law on representatives would have to be changed.

The Union and the SPD have been struggling for weeks to implement the pension commission's proposals. It remains to be clarified whether and in what form the pension without deductions should remain after 45 years of contributions, whether there should continue to be mini-jobs and whether the so-called block model should continue to be offered in partial retirement. While Chancellor Friedrich Merz had spoken out in favor of fully implementing the Commission's proposals, Hoffmann now said that building blocks could certainly be broken out.

“It is completely legitimate for individual parties to say that I don’t want the building block,” said the CSU politician. But even with statutory health insurance, it was clear that another proposal would have to be presented that would bring the same savings. But this doesn't play a role when it comes to involving MPs because this step has primarily a symbolic effect.

SPD General Secretary Tim Klüssendorf also emphasized this on Monday. At the same time, however, he warned that the Union should not move away from the Pension Commission's proposals. It is a “very clear position” for the SPD that, as a first step, both self-employed people and members of the Bundestag should pay directly into the statutory pension insurance. “It’s about justice, but it’s also about symbolic power,” said Klüssendorf. “These are also components (...) of this agreement on pension insurance.”