Federal Finance Minister Olaf Scholz (SPD) will have to incur far more debts next year than previously planned. According to SPIEGEL information, experts from his ministry and budget experts from the government parliamentary groups expect the federal government to take out up to 125 billion euros in new loans in 2021.
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The amount of new debt will be finally decided at the so-called adjustment meeting of the Bundestag budget committee on Thursday of the week after next. Finance Minister Scholz had so far only provided 96.2 billion euros in fresh loans in the federal government’s draft for the 2021 budget.
The reason for the increased need for money is the consequences of the corona crisis. The extension of the bridging aid for troubled companies, which is planned for next year, will cost several billion euros. Scholz also assumes that support payments for companies that have to temporarily close in November due to the corona will not be paid until next year. Finally, he has to make provisions for other costs of the pandemic, such as the procurement, storage and distribution of vaccines.
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