Other federal states are jealous of Berlin. Governing Mayor Franziska Giffey said so in an interview. The background is that Berlin recently decided on a three billion euro relief package. But that was only possible with money from other countries, according to CDU politician Tauber.
Berlin’s governing mayor, Franziska Giffey, claimed in an interview that other countries were jealous of Berlin. CDU General Secretary Peter Tauber then criticized on Twitter: “The Hessians will certainly be happy to pay for that.” Because Berlin gets the most money from the state financial equalization. Giffey immediately countered the criticism: “Sounds like envy of Berlin! Hesse could have launched such a relief package,” said Giffey in the “Tagesspiegel” on Saturday. After all, it also has additional tax revenue due to inflation.
Berlin had previously launched a three billion euro relief package, including:
The financial equalization of the federal states is intended to compensate for the differences in financial power among the federal states resulting from the distribution of taxes. In 2021, Berlin received 3.6 billion euros from the state financial equalization. This was followed by Saxony with around 3.2 billion euros and Saxony-Anhalt with around 1.98 billion euros. Hesse, on the other hand, gave over 3.5 billion. The largest donor was Bavaria with around nine billion euros.
According to Giffey, the economic growth in Berlin would have made the decision in favor of the relief package possible. Growth in Berlin was 3.7 percent in the first half of 2022, that of Bavaria was -0.8 percent, Giffey compares. Many would have looked to Berlin for a long time, Giffey defends himself. “By the way, many federal states are now gradually adopting what we have done with our relief package against the energy crisis,” she continues.
