The German Association of Cities has called on the traffic light coalition to reach an immediate agreement in the dispute over the planned basic child security. “The new basic child security should be a milestone against child poverty. Now the traffic light has to hit the knot so that the new system can come by 2025,” said Managing Director Helmut Dedy of the editorial network Germany (RND). “The cornerstones of the family minister are already pointing in the right direction,” said Dedy. “We call for speedy coordination within the federal government.”
In the case of basic child security, various services are to be bundled, from child benefit and child allowance to financial support for school trips and leisure time. Many families have not yet applied for benefits – due to ignorance or bureaucratic hurdles. Families and their children should benefit from basic security from 2025.
Lindner: It’s about digitization, not necessarily about money
Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) had told the news portal “t-online” against the background of the ongoing budget negotiations that there was still no concept for basic child security. From his point of view, the main thing is digitization and simplification of the support of children, not necessarily more money.
Federal Family Minister Lisa Paus (Greens) repeatedly insisted on the implementation of the coalition agreement, in which the introduction of basic child security is anchored. Green leader Ricarda Lang told the “Bild am Sonntag”: “The basic child security must come, and it will come, so it must also be financed.”
Dedy assumes that there will be a great deal of effort involved in implementation. “The legislative process should be initiated quickly. The preparation of this administrative reform will be a major effort, since the federal, state and local governments have to combine their previous social benefits for families,” he told RND. “In order for this to succeed, the fundamental decisions must be made very quickly.”