Prime ministers conference with chancellor merkel in berlin - saarnews

Agreement on refugee financing and guidelines for climate and energy policy – approval and signing of the science pacts

At today’s conference with Chancellor Merkel in Berlin, the heads of government of the federal states agreed to finance refugee costs for 2020 and 2021.

The agreement had been preceded by extensive negotiations with the federal government, which had led the Saarland and Hamburg as chairpersons of the prime ministerial conference. Prime Minister Tobias Hans was accordingly satisfied: “Today’s agreement is the result of intensive and trusting negotiations with the federal government. I am very happy that we managed to find a load-based regulation. Saarland, as co-chair of the MPK, has always clearly emphasized the central role of the states and municipalities for the successful integration of refugees. I am therefore all the more pleased that we have agreed today on a solution that meets all interests. Integration is a task for society as a whole, the challenges of which are particularly evident on site. It is therefore important that we have successfully negotiated on behalf of the federal states and local authorities. "

In addition, the heads of government of the federal states adopted guidelines for the implementation of the climate and energy policy goals. The states reaffirmed that Germany should play a role model with the compatibility of climate protection and industrial production. To achieve the 2030 climate protection goals, the federal states will support the German government in their respective projects. From the prime minister’s point of view, the central guidelines of the energy turnaround are, in particular, the maintenance of security of supply, an affordable and competitive energy supply, and the common definition of climate protection goals by the federal, state and local authorities.

“I am very happy that today, as countries, in our discussion with the Chancellor, we have set the climate and energy policy framework for the climate and energy transition. As Prime Minister of an industrialized country like Saarland, it is particularly important to me to emphasize that a successful energy transition presupposes reconciling the aspects of climate protection, maintaining and strengthening Germany as a business location, and securing an affordable energy supply. The federal and state governments must work together to create innovation-friendly framework conditions to further promote climate-neutral future technologies. It is an important signal to make combined heat and power generation future-proof. The renewal of the combined heat and power generation until 2030 that Federal Minister of Economics Altmaier has promised again today is therefore very gratifying and necessary. CHP plants are important because on the one hand they provide reliable, climate-friendly energy, and on the other hand they compensate for the existing fluctuations in renewable energies. Combined heat and power is one of the strengths of municipal energy suppliers, especially the many municipal utilities in our country. They now have more planning security, ”said Prime Minister Tobias Hans.

In addition to other issues, including those relating to European policy, the heads of government dealt with the implementation of the Aachen Treaty to deepen cooperation between Germany and France, and lifted the central one together with the Chancellor Role of Countries and municipalities. Prime Minister Hans: "Especially for border regions like the Saarland, the Aachen Treaty is both an opportunity and a contract, the diverse cooperation with our French neighbors, be it in terms of transport and infrastructure measures, but also in the area of AI and other future technologies, as well as cross-border Health care and mutual language teaching to continue to advance. As countries, we will now work towards a swift implementation of the contract ".

The prime ministerial conference voted today also the science pacts, which the science ministers of the federal and state governments had agreed on in May this year. The "Future Study and Teaching Contract", the federal-state agreement "Innovation in University Teaching" and the continuation of the "Pact for Research and Innovation" were decided, through which the funding of universities and research institutions will be extended and extended in the coming years should be secured. "The agreement between the federal government and the states brings our Universities and research institutions have financial planning security. This is a good day for Saarland as a university and research location. Saarland will remain a highly attractive study location with excellent research and scientific institutions, especially in the future and innovation sectors, ”said the Saarland Prime Minister.