The Minister Presidents of Saxony and Brandenburg, Michael Kretschmer and Dietmar Woitke, have sharply criticized the ongoing discussions about the coal phase-out. They had jointly negotiated the lignite phase-out by 2038, "also because the interests of the regions were important to us", said Kretschmer on Tuesday after a joint meeting of the state cabinets at the Boxberg power plant. "We are not only astonished, but also annoyed at how dates have been repeatedly given over the past few years that have no legal basis."
Germany is a constitutional state and there is a law on the 2038 coal phase-out, said Kretschmer. If this was to be changed, it would have to be discussed with the population in the regions and the political leaders, "in order to perhaps create a new consensus, that would be the right way". Monday's G7 decision "is the opposite, it destroys trust", said the CDU politician and asked on what basis the year 2035 was being discussed. "Definitely not on the basis of current law in the Federal Republic of Germany and obviously not on the basis of economic possibilities either."
