The timetable for passing the controversial heating law in the Bundestag is becoming more and more shaky. The traffic light groups agreed on Tuesday not to discuss the draft in the first reading in Parliament this week. "With good will, we can still pass the law by the summer," said the parliamentary secretary of the SPD parliamentary group, Katja Mast. The coalition of SPD, Greens and FDP had actually already agreed on this. The FDP had recently questioned the date and is pushing for a complete revision.
The parliamentary summer recess begins on 7 July, until then there are three more weeks of sittings. "Now it's the parliament's turn," Mast said. There are already preparatory talks in the coalition this week. People rightly demand clarity on how to proceed with heating. "The SPD parliamentary group only agrees to the law if heating remains affordable," Mast emphasized.
The Greens have criticized the coalition partner FDP because of the delays in the heating law. "The unreliability at this point is astonishing," said Green parliamentary group leader Britta Hasselmann on Tuesday in Berlin. She recalled that the timetable had been agreed together with FDP chairman Christian Lindner. "I expect the FDP to end its blockade attitude now," Hasselmann stressed. If the law is not discussed in the next week of the session, the ability of the federal government to act and the ability of the traffic light coalition to work would be damaged.
According to the draft already adopted by the Federal Cabinet, from 2024 onwards, 65 percent of every newly installed heating system is to be powered by green energy. This should apply to all owners up to the age of 80. Existing oil and gas heating systems can continue to operate, broken ones can be repaired. According to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the changeover is to be cushioned socially by subsidies – but the details are controversial. The law is considered an important component of the project to make Germany climate-neutral by 2045.