According to the bill, there will no longer be precise climate protection requirements for individual zones in the future. Instead, the full value of greenhouse gases saved should be applied. The Ministry of Transport in Wissing regularly violates the requirements and would therefore particularly benefit from the new law.
Now a new conflict arises: since the law has not been approved, the Minister of Transport threatens the coalition partners. In a letter available to the Bild newspaper, Wissing warns: If the law does not come into force before July 15, 2024, his ministry will have to present an “immediate program” to achieve the objectives.
Wissing threatens: if the climate protection law is not passed, there is a risk of traffic bans
According to the FDP man, this “immediate program” is as follows: “A corresponding reduction in the volume of traffic would only be possible through restrictive measures that are difficult to communicate to the population, such as nationwide and indefinite traffic bans on Saturdays and Sundays. “
The newspaper “Bild” quotes Wissing's appeal to the coalition partners: “It would be difficult to convey to people that they can only use the car five days a week, even though we are generally achieving the climate protection targets. “
The deputy of the FDP parliamentary group, Konrad, rejects the traffic bans
Now the vice president of the FDP parliamentary group in the Bundestag, Carina Konrad, also spoke. And with her it sounds different than with Wissing: he rules out traffic bans for cars and trucks to achieve climate goals. “With the FDP there will be no traffic bans,” Konrad told the t-online news portal on Friday.
At the same time, Konrad is pushing for an acceleration of the planned climate protection law, which the traffic light coalition is still debating. “The climate protection law must finally be passed,” he said. There is a clear agreement within the coalition, “which also applies to the Green parliamentary group,” Konrad said. “Germany has achieved its climate goals. “Therefore, not only would these cuts in the transport sector be completely disproportionate, but the economic damage would be socially and economically poisonous.”
Spahn on traffic bans: “The FDP has completely lost itself at the traffic lights”
The vice-president of the parliamentary group of the Union, Jens Spahn, harshly criticized Volker Wissing for his pressure to ban the movement. “The FDP has completely lost its way at the traffic light,” Spahn told the t-online news portal on Friday.
“Wissing's threat follows the motto: first they lost sight of the target and then they increased speed,” Spahn said. “The fact is that the traffic lights have been violating the climate protection law for two and a half years. And apparently he has no power to change anything about it.”
The Greens respond to Wissing: “This statement is simply wrong”
In the debate on the climate protection law, Green Party Deputy Leader Julia Verlinden rejected Transport Minister Volker Wissing's statements about the imminent driving ban. “This claim is simply false,” Verlinden told the German Press Agency on Thursday afternoon. “A minister should not raise unfounded concerns among the people.”
Green Party MP Verlinden said the current law only requires Wissing to present a climate protection program “containing sensible proposals leading to greater climate protection in the transport sector.” “There are many different options, such as a speed limit. “It would be time for the Minister to make some good suggestions.” Wissing and the FDP categorically reject a general speed limit on motorways that the Greens have long called for.