From the start of the war almost a year ago to early 2023, around 110,000 people from Ukraine had come to Lower Saxony. Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) will discuss refugee policy on Thursday. What is Lower Saxony hoping for from the summit?
Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil is calling for more financial support from the federal government for the accommodation of refugees before the refugee summit. Municipalities have high expectations. We need more federal shelters. And the financial support can and should be further improved, said the SPD politician of the German Press Agency (dpa).
The refugee summit of Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) is on Thursday. Representatives of the conference of interior ministers and local umbrella organizations take part.
Lower Saxony’s Interior Minister Daniela Behrens (SPD) welcomed the summit, saying there was a great need for communication. She called for longer reliability in the financing of refugee accommodation – even beyond this year. We help each other from year to year. As a rule, the federal and state governments also find good financial agreements, but it is always very short-term, said Behrens of the dpa. There are no signs of improvement in Ukraine, said the minister. Lower Saxony manages refugee accommodation quite well, but municipalities in the federal state have also reported major problems. Many people would continue to come to Germany, including those who had fled to the Ukraine.
The interior minister went on to explain: We have set up migration advisory structures in all countries, which also have to be financed on a sustainable basis, and we will certainly talk to the federal government about that too. Behrens said that a new concept is currently being worked on in Lower Saxony, which will create more smaller facilities for refugee accommodation and fewer large accommodations.
The Lower Saxony City Council also demanded more money from the federal government for the accommodation of refugees. Managing Director Jan Arning said: The federal and state governments have to bear the full costs here. The municipal budgets are all in deficit; the current federal payment of 143 million euros for Lower Saxony is a drop in the ocean.
