Overview
- The Junge Union unanimously urged rejection of the bill and the Junge Gruppe signaled its roughly 18 MPs will withhold support in the current form.
- Chancellor Friedrich Merz defended the package in Rust and vowed to back it in the Bundestag, dismissing a €120 billion post‑2031 cost estimate as hypothetical.
- The SPD’s Lars Klingbeil said no edits will be made, a stance that could sink the measure given the coalition’s reported 12‑vote majority.
- The draft secures a 48% pension level through 2031 and envisages a higher reference after that date, while JU proposals include a contributions moratorium and linking retirement age to life expectancy.
- Unionsfraktionschef Jens Spahn offered talks to find an acceptable solution, as CDU figure Manuel Hagel and the Senioren Union voiced support for the youth’s concerns ahead of a planned early‑December parliamentary push.