Scholz was finance minister under his predecessor, Angela Merkel, in 2020 when leaders sealed a historic agreement to issue joint debt to finance loans and grants for the recovery fund. The SPD hinted that this time jointly backed loans issued by the European Investment Bank could be an option for member states with tight national budgets.
Discussions on the subject among EU leaders are at a very early stage and it will be difficult to forge a consensus given the resistance in some member states with a tradition of fiscal prudence, the person close to Scholz said. Any agreement will probably take several months but Scholz nevertheless believes that there must be European financing in addition to ramping up national subsidies, the person added.
The SPD wants the EU to expand its subsidy program for important European technology projects. Existing projects in the areas of battery-cell production and green hydrogen should be deepened and given more funding while new ones in other areas should be ramped up much faster and with less bureaucracy, the paper says.
They need to keep this green shittt just there in Europe, Africa is OK