"How to achieve more with less input" - Volker Wieland on the debt brake (Münchner Merkur/Ippen-Gruppe)

The debt brake has recently fallen into disrepute in Germany. Many economists consider it anti-growth. In a guest article for Ippen Digital, Volker Wieland took a look across the border to Switzerland, where the debt brake was introduced 20 years ago with an overwhelming majority in a referendum.

In Switzerland people talk about how sensible it is to limit the urge to spend. The debt brake forces politicians to see conflicting goals, weigh them up and remain able to act in the future, said Wieland.

According to Wieland, other measures could be used to “achieve more with less,” according to the existing debt brake. "Neither restaurant and hotel users nor manufacturers of standard chips for the world market need all the subsidies at the expense of future taxpayers. And we don't necessarily have to encourage urgently needed workers to retire at 63." Wieland also sees opportunities in climate transformation: "Anyone who would have to pay more for the right to emit greenhouse gases will invest in climate-friendly technologies."

Münchner Merkur/Frankfurter Rundschau (Ippen-Gruppe": "Zukunft abgesagt: Eine wahre Geschichte"