German farmers threatened to repeat their protests next week if the government does not drop its planned subsidy cuts hitting the agriculture sector. Agence France-Presse reported Thursday thousands of German farmers had blocked roads with tractors for one week, seeking to overturn plans by the government to scrap tax breaks for agriculture. “If nothing comes on agricultural diesel, the next protests and action will start from the coming week,” said German Farmers’ Federation Head Joachim Rukwied. The protests had prompted the German government to walk back on the cuts, promising to reinstate a discount on the vehicle tax and to phase out a diesel subsidy over several years instead of right away. However, the farmers had insisted the move was not enough. “Everything that has been announced until now has only caused more irritation rather than calm things down,” said Rukwied. The German government had been forced to make the cuts after a constitutional challenge in 2023 blew a multimillion dollar hole in its budget. The savings came at a time when Germany’s export-oriented economy was under severe pressure over inflation. Besides farmers, workers from various sectors have staged protests against the backdrop of rising prices and poor economic performance. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz defended the cuts as fair. German Finance Minister Christian Lindner braved catcalling and boos to tell a farmers’ protest on Monday that everyone must contribute as the government tries to find savings. Berlin was brought to a standstill on Monday as thousands of tractors gathered from across Germany to protest over the government’s plan to cut fuel subsidies. READ MORE: German Farmers’ freedom protest escalates to 30,000 peopleThe protest was estimated at 30,000 people and had 1,300 police officers present. Local media reported about 4,000 trucks were in Berlin’s downtown core..The protests began on January 8 when small-scale ones rolled out across Germany. Culminating factors in them were subsidy slashes, high energy and labour costs and increasing government meddling in agricultural production.
German farmers threatened to repeat their protests next week if the government does not drop its planned subsidy cuts hitting the agriculture sector. Agence France-Presse reported Thursday thousands of German farmers had blocked roads with tractors for one week, seeking to overturn plans by the government to scrap tax breaks for agriculture. “If nothing comes on agricultural diesel, the next protests and action will start from the coming week,” said German Farmers’ Federation Head Joachim Rukwied. The protests had prompted the German government to walk back on the cuts, promising to reinstate a discount on the vehicle tax and to phase out a diesel subsidy over several years instead of right away. However, the farmers had insisted the move was not enough. “Everything that has been announced until now has only caused more irritation rather than calm things down,” said Rukwied. The German government had been forced to make the cuts after a constitutional challenge in 2023 blew a multimillion dollar hole in its budget. The savings came at a time when Germany’s export-oriented economy was under severe pressure over inflation. Besides farmers, workers from various sectors have staged protests against the backdrop of rising prices and poor economic performance. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz defended the cuts as fair. German Finance Minister Christian Lindner braved catcalling and boos to tell a farmers’ protest on Monday that everyone must contribute as the government tries to find savings. Berlin was brought to a standstill on Monday as thousands of tractors gathered from across Germany to protest over the government’s plan to cut fuel subsidies. READ MORE: German Farmers’ freedom protest escalates to 30,000 peopleThe protest was estimated at 30,000 people and had 1,300 police officers present. Local media reported about 4,000 trucks were in Berlin’s downtown core..The protests began on January 8 when small-scale ones rolled out across Germany. Culminating factors in them were subsidy slashes, high energy and labour costs and increasing government meddling in agricultural production.
