Germany and France Signal End of Welfare State

Germany and France: The Debate on the End of the Welfare State

A forum thread discusses whether Berlin and Paris are openly stating what remains unspoken in Spain. One user cites German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, reportedly saying that the welfare state "as we know it today is no longer financially sustainable." Another participant notes that the right-wing is in power in France. Here, there is silence. The ensuing discussion is significant: what gets cut, who pays the bill, and why adjustments always target pensions.

Which German Benefits Are Under Scrutiny?

A user shares a list attributed to German media regarding benefits facing cuts. The Bürgergeld—the basic unemployment subsidy—is set to be abolished and replaced by a stricter system. Income supplements for low earners totaled approximately 47 billion euros in 2024, according to the same source. Another message claims that benefits for non-German citizens account for nearly half of this basic subsidy spending.

This last figure causes the most discomfort in the thread. For years, immigration was sold as the system's pillar; now, with migration records breaking highs, the system is declared unsustainable. A participant complains that this contradiction is glaring and unexplained.

The Adjustment Only Hinted At in Spain

According to contributors, the margin is narrower in Spain. The prevailing economic analysis suggests that adjustments can only be made through pensions. It is argued that this is the budget item consuming the most funds and the only one large enough to balance accounts without dismantling healthcare or education.

Some argue that social-democratic parties will not touch anything, leaving the next government to handle the fallout, ready to label them far-right. Precedent does not help, another user notes: in Spain, it was the PSOE that froze pensions and removed a bonus for civil servants, just as it was the PP that eliminated military service. Each party did what their electorate would never have forgiven during a campaign.

Defense Spending Breaks the Narrative

The most highlighted inconsistency: benefits are cut to reduce debt and tax pressure, yet defense spending skyrockets to 5% to purchase armaments. Some ironize that everything is in order.

The lingering question is where the money comes from. The suggested answer is uncomfortable: foreign capital is buying hotel capacity and supporting parties that control future governments. What matters, it is argued, is not improving citizens' situations.

Eighty Years of Welfare and Sudden Cuts

For eight decades—in some countries even longer—the welfare state existed without major issues, one user argues. Now, suddenly, the official narrative says it must be dismantled. This abrupt shift fuels suspicion that the problem is not sustainability, but distribution.

In response, the harshest stance emerges: those who do not work should not eat. Small handouts do not last forever. The symmetrical reply: remove taxes too, not just benefits. Users recall that the tax cuts promised under Rajoy never materialized.

Military Service Returns, Diverting the Debate

One message states that Germany is reinstating military service, while the right governs in France. Some argue this is no coincidence: if there are surplus people, wars are created. Meanwhile, public discourse distracts by pointing fingers at those who do not align with the Palestinian cause. There is no other debate.

What truly matters, according to this current, is when the European populace starts to move. With young generations seeking refuge in civil service exams—a civil servant candidate causes no trouble for years—the margin narrows. And the civil service, viewed as an extractive caste, is not spared either.

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The adjustment will come, some conclude. The doubt is whether anyone will explain it beforehand or if, as always, we will learn about it through the fine print. Coherence, in any case, is absent.