Germany's parliament passes historic package boosting defence spending

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Germany's parliament passes historic package boosting defence spending  Friedrich Merz needed the support of two-thirds majority in parliament for his plan to unlock billions for defence and infrastructure spending.   READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2025/03/18/germanys-parliament-passes-historic-package-boosting-defence-spending  Subscribe to our channel. Euronews is available on Dailymotion in 12 languages

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00:00Germany's parliament on Tuesday passed a historic financial package to massively boost defense

00:08and infrastructure spending. The bill unlocks billions in defense spending and sets up another

00:14500 billion fund for infrastructure projects. But some experts say a temporary reform is

00:20not enough and a full reform of the so-called debt break is needed.

00:25The package would be a very important step in the right direction, but that alone will not be enough.

00:31We need a reform of the debt break to permanently bring investments in infrastructure, education and defense

00:38into the federal budget. And we also need reforms in bureaucracy, in employees, in other areas,

00:45so that such investments can be implemented at all.

00:50Experts have also warned that any infrastructure projects will need additional reforms to address Germany's labor shortage.

01:11A hundred billion of the fund will go towards supporting climate measures.

01:16A key concession CDU leader Friedrich Merz made to get the Greens to agree on the package.

01:24The bill made it through parliament with 513 votes in its favor.

01:30The bill passed marks a historic shift in Germany's attitude towards taking on debt,

01:35triggered by a felt need to increase defense spending.

01:38But the bill still needs the approval of the parliament's upper house to become law.

01:43Tamzin Paternoster, in Berlin, for Euronews.

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