German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil (SPD) detailed specific savings targets for the 2027 federal budget at a press conference in Berlin. The measures aim to close a 111 billion euro financing gap. The largest cuts target pensions at four billion euros.
Following the cabinet's decision on the 2027 budget guidelines, Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil specified the savings targets. These Eckwerte set the framework for spending and cuts.
Pensions face the highest savings of four billion euros, as Klingbeil announced. The pensions commission will determine implementation details. The Digital Ministry must propose efficiency measures like digitalization and bureaucracy reduction to save the federal government three billion euros.
The health reform will reduce the federal subsidy for statutory health insurers by two billion euros. The Construction Ministry faces one billion euros in cuts, the Family Ministry 500 million euros. A flat one percent cut across departments should yield another four billion euros.
Klingbeil sees potential for up to 30 billion euros in subsidy reductions, beyond the current 300 million euros planned. "I have a different level of ambition there," he said. Revenues include 1.4 billion euros from a plastics levy, two billion from taxes on tobacco and alcohol, and two billion from fighting tax evasion and crypto taxation.
