Overview
- Chancellor Friedrich Merz defended the pension package at the Junge Union gathering, vowed to back it in the Bundestag and rejected calls to rewrite the draft.
- Young Union delegates unanimously urged the parliamentary group to withhold support, with Junge Gruppe chair Pascal Redding insisting there will be no compromise.
- SPD leader Lars Klingbeil ruled out any changes to the bill and signaled the government intends to pass it as agreed, a stance echoed by Labor Minister Bärbel Bas.
- The disputed clause would keep the pension level higher beyond 2031, which JU critics estimate would add roughly €118–120 billion in costs that Merz disputes.
- The coalition’s narrow majority makes the 18 JU MPs decisive, as whip Jens Spahn opens talks with rebels while senior figures like Markus Söder, Katherina Reiche and Seniors’ Union chief Hubert Hüppe endorse their concerns or urge negotiations.