Overview
- Chancellor Friedrich Merz ruled out changing the 48% pension floor through 2031 but offered a political add‑on committing to post‑2032 reform and an accelerated commission reporting before summer 2026.
- Eighteen younger CDU/CSU lawmakers threaten to withhold their votes, a number that exceeds the coalition’s 12‑seat margin and could sink the package in the early‑December Bundestag vote.
- SPD vice chancellor Lars Klingbeil insisted the bill will not be reopened, while CDU minister Karin Prien urged postponing the parliamentary vote to seek a broader consensus.
- Merz suggested options for the period after 2031, including linking pension adjustments to inflation rather than wages, without altering the current bill’s core guarantee.
- CSU leader Markus Söder voiced sympathy for the youth wing’s concerns yet pledged not to undermine Merz, with the fate of linked measures such as the Aktivrente and the Mütterrente III also at stake.