Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger wants to implement a new economic policy with the traffic lights. Otherwise not only prosperity would be in danger, but also democracy.
As a minister, she is less often in the limelight than many cabinet colleagues, but her word carries weight within her party: Bettina Stark-Watzinger is Federal Minister for Education and Research and also deputy federal chairwoman of the Liberals. In this role, she is opening the 75th Federal Party Conference in Berlin this Saturday, which is all about economic policy.
t-online met Stark-Watzinger in advance for an interview. In the interview, she explains why the Liberals are having such a difficult time in the polls, why she is against new debt for research funding and how the legislative process needs to change so that politicians not only think more carefully about risks but also opportunities for innovation.
t-online: Ms. Stark-Watzinger, you are opening a party conference today in difficult times for the Liberals. In surveys, the FDP fluctuates between 4 and 6 percent. Why do Germans have so little desire for freedom?
Bettina Stark-Watzinger: This party conference is taking place especially in difficult economic times, both for companies and for the people in our country. We expect growth of only 0.3 percent this year, which cannot satisfy anyone. Germany is therefore at the bottom of the list in Europe. Our mission is therefore to ensure significantly more growth. We as liberals are convinced that this requires a change in economic policy.
However, this does not seem to have reached the voters yet. How much does that frustrate you?
It depresses me that there is currently so little optimism in Germany – especially among young people. We must make it clear that the best is yet to come. It is all the more important that we as a party now clearly say what we want to change.
Brand new figures from Forsa show: The FDP has the lowest “cohesive power” of all parties in the Bundestag, only 29 percent of FDP voters in 2021 would vote for the Liberals again. Why is that?
In fact, we face different challenges than the mainstream parties, which still benefit more from traditional voter behavior. For us Free Democrats it was and is always important to convince people with our issues and our political actions. Our core concern – the freedom of the individual – is not always easy in times when people are looking for security, but it is more relevant than ever. Freedom is the foundation of everything and that is what we stand for.
The current surveys also show that in all age groups the proportion of female supporters is lower than that of men. Is the FDP a young men’s party?
No. There are many strong women in the party, both in leadership positions and at the grassroots level. Especially with our top European candidate Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, we are showing how strong women are and that they belong at the top. She is a great campaigner and a great role model.
So far, many regular voters have had the impression that the FDP is not doing enough to improve the country’s economic situation. Is this the reason for the now proclaimed “economic turnaround”?
These are challenging times! After the Russian attack on Ukraine, we as the federal government first had to deal with the changing times and its consequences, such as the energy crisis. But now the question is: How do we create more growth and prosperity? That’s why we now need a new economic policy with which we can make Germany fit for the future. The good thing is: the basis for this is there. There are many outstanding companies that are innovative and can achieve a lot. We just have to relieve them, especially by breaking bureaucratic shackles.
