German students call on government to 'deliver' on €200 energy payout
The German Student Union has responded with frustration at the lack of a clear deadline for the €200 energy payment promised by the government last year.
Matthias Anbuhl, chairman of the board of the Studierendenwerk (Students' Union), told the Stuttgarter Zeitung on Friday that ministers needed to finally "deliver" on the long-delayed payout for students and trainees.
In September, the federal government had signaled that students would be getting a €200 payout as part of a wider relief package to help people with rising costs.
READ ALSO: Why students in Germany are still waiting for €200 energy payout
"They haven't received anything yet, although they now have the higher costs for gas and electricity," Anbuhl added.
Warning politicians to be clear about when the energy payment would arrive, Anbuhl said the long delays in rolling out the payment risked gambling away students' trust.
'Home stretch'
According to Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP), students in Germany shouldn't have to wait too much longer to get a boost.
"We are entering the home stretch on this," the FDP politician told DPA on Wednesday. A spokesperson for the ministry did not want to give a concrete date for the start of the payments, but Stark-Watzinger has previously said it would happen in winter.
The major issue in delivering the relief payments has been the lack of a central database that records the bank account details of students. The federal government and the states are now trying to bring this data together on a joint online platform so that the money can be applied for centrally there.
READ ALSO: What students in Germany should know about the €200 energy payout
However, the opposition Left Party slammed the government for the lengthy delays and the fact that students were therefore unable to plan financially.
"What Education Minister Stark-Watzinger and her ministry are doing here is simply embarrassing," the party's co-chair, Janine Wissler, told DPA.
The enormously high gas and electricity bills were no trifling matter, she said, adding that many were in urgent need of payment.
"She must now clarify whether the end of winter means the calendar winter, the meteorological winter or simply a ministerial winter," said Wissler.
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Matthias Anbuhl, chairman of the board of the Studierendenwerk (Students' Union), told the Stuttgarter Zeitung on Friday that ministers needed to finally "deliver" on the long-delayed payout for students and trainees.
In September, the federal government had signaled that students would be getting a €200 payout as part of a wider relief package to help people with rising costs.
READ ALSO: Why students in Germany are still waiting for €200 energy payout
"They haven't received anything yet, although they now have the higher costs for gas and electricity," Anbuhl added.
Warning politicians to be clear about when the energy payment would arrive, Anbuhl said the long delays in rolling out the payment risked gambling away students' trust.
'Home stretch'
According to Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP), students in Germany shouldn't have to wait too much longer to get a boost.
"We are entering the home stretch on this," the FDP politician told DPA on Wednesday. A spokesperson for the ministry did not want to give a concrete date for the start of the payments, but Stark-Watzinger has previously said it would happen in winter.
The major issue in delivering the relief payments has been the lack of a central database that records the bank account details of students. The federal government and the states are now trying to bring this data together on a joint online platform so that the money can be applied for centrally there.
READ ALSO: What students in Germany should know about the €200 energy payout
However, the opposition Left Party slammed the government for the lengthy delays and the fact that students were therefore unable to plan financially.
"What Education Minister Stark-Watzinger and her ministry are doing here is simply embarrassing," the party's co-chair, Janine Wissler, told DPA.
The enormously high gas and electricity bills were no trifling matter, she said, adding that many were in urgent need of payment.
"She must now clarify whether the end of winter means the calendar winter, the meteorological winter or simply a ministerial winter," said Wissler.
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