Overview
- At the Junge Union congress in Rust, Chancellor Friedrich Merz vowed to vote for the cabinet’s pension bill and warned against a political "undercutting" of the pension level.
- Junge Union delegates unanimously opposed the draft and the 18-member Junge Gruppe signaled it would withhold votes in the Bundestag.
- SPD co-leader Lars Klingbeil declared there will be no changes to the bill, reinforcing the coalition’s stance to keep the 48 percent safeguard through 2031.
- Internal CDU pressure grew as Baden-Württemberg party leader Manuel Hagel backed the youth demands for further talks, while Senioren-Union chief Hubert Hüppe voiced understanding for their fiscal concerns.
- With a working majority of roughly 12 votes, the government could lose a majority if the 18 dissent as the youth cite about €120 billion in post‑2031 costs that Merz calls hypothetical.