Overview
- At the Junge Union’s Deutschlandtag in Rust, Friedrich Merz’s appeal for support drew icy silence while critics of the package won loud applause.
- The Union’s Junge Gruppe of 18 Bundestag members and the JU signaled they will not back the bill in its current form, imperiling the coalition’s working majority.
- The draft would hold the pension level at 48% until 2031, with critics warning that extensions beyond 2031 could create roughly €120 billion in follow‑up costs by 2040.
- SPD co-leader Lars Klingbeil stated that the law will not be changed, reinforcing a hard line against renegotiation.
- CSU leader Markus Söder called for renewed talks and publicly defended Merz, while the coalition plans a Bundestag vote in the first week of December and an Aktivrente launch around the turn of the year.