BERLIN, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- The Budget Committee of the German Bundestag (parliament) agreed on a federal annual budget of 362 billion euros (399.34 billion U.S. dollars) for 2020 on Friday.
For the seventh time in a row, Germany is set to make no new debts. The German government announced to continue its "black zero" policy of a balanced budget with no deficits despite a 6 billion-euro increase compared to 2019.
"We have the necessary income to finance the right priorities," stated Eckhardt Rehberg, member of Germany's Christian Democratic Union (CDU), adding that record investments of 42.9 billion euros would strengthen growth in Germany.
The 2020 budget was 1.66 billion euros higher than originally proposed by German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz. For its 2020 budget, Germany is profiting, from additional funds available because of low interest payments on its debts and unused cash reserves.
Criticism came from Germany's Green Party. According to Green party member Sven-Christian Kindler, the concept of the "black zero" would not be appropriate anymore because interest rates would be low while there were too few investments.
The 2020 budget included more money for climate protection, social issues and families as well as a larger defense spending. The budget for education was also increased and additional funds to promote Germany's digital infrastructure were included.
Because of Germany's pension system, the largest share of the federal budget would go to the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs. With more than 150 billion euros, the labor ministry accounts for more than 40 percent of the 2020 federal budget.
In addition, the financial support for Germany's former coal regions would be increased from 500 million euros to 1 billion euros in 2020. The German government is seeking to generate 65 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2030 while fully phasing out coal by 2038 at the latest. Enditem
