Klingbeil: "System must become fairer and more solidary"

According to SPD leader Lars Klingbeil, the problem of rising social security contributions is not so easy to tackle. The system's problems cannot simply be glossed over with money, he told the Süddeutsche Zeitung. It is necessary to work swiftly on real reforms.

Referring to the government of the planned coalition government, Klingbeil said: "Either we manage to modernize the social security systems now in four years, or they will be destroyed by the populists. They'll come with a chainsaw or an axe."

When asked whether civil servants should also contribute to the system, Klingbeil said: "We can imagine expanding the base of those who contribute to the statutory pension." He was also open to other proposals, such as fund solutions in addition to the statutory pension. However, saying that people should work longer to earn their pensions and that healthcare benefits should be cut was not his answer as a Social Democrat. "We need to make the entire system fairer and more solidarity-based. Commissions should now address this," said the SPD leader.

Statutory health insurance funds are demanding that the future federal government take immediate action to combat rising social security contributions. The Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds (GKV) called for a spending moratorium before the summer break, stipulating that there will be no more fee and price increases that exceed the actual revenues of the health insurance funds.

"We already had record-high premium increases at the beginning of the year. This cannot continue. It is necessary for the new federal government to act before the summer break," association spokesman Florian Lanz told the German Press Agency.

Association spokesman Lanz said it was right to restore fundamental stability to statutory health insurance through structural reforms. "But to protect contributors, we cannot simply wait for the results of a reform commission," he warned.