Berlin, February 3, 2021.

Dear Readers,

Foreseeable failures catch up with you in a crisis. Also in the Corona crisis - with relentless force. For years, the federal government of the CDU/CSU and SPD has neglected to lead Germany into the digital age; faxing health offices are just one example. While the federal government calls on companies to send their employees into the home office, these same companies are waiting for modern labour law, simple rules for mobile working and a working time law that fits the 21st century. Those who can afford a legal department may still have a clue as to when the absurd laptop ban in the workplace ordinance applies. The normal SME is left alone in the legal grey area.

What we really need is an Agenda 2030! It was not by chance that Germany's last major political modernisation push came in the form of a major social reform. This is where the regulatory battles of the social market economy are fought, this is where the central players are to be found. And this is where most confusion reigns: the SPD is seeking distance from Agenda 2010, the Greens are seeking proximity to the unconditional basic income, and the CDU/CSU are looking for the next chancellor candidate. But after the immediate reaction to the Corona crisis, the central questions inevitably come to us.

In the good economic years, attention was paid to sound finances in the budget, which is what made us capable of acting in the crisis in the first place. We must finally apply this lesson to all social security systems. Because from 2025 onwards, the baby boomers will be retiring and demographic change will become a reality. So there is still one legislative period left for a genuine reform that combines an adequate retirement life and a targeted fight against old-age poverty with stable contribution rates and demographic sustainability. Because the 40% target for social security contributions is right - but it will not be secured with more and more tax money, but only with structural reforms. Our ideas for this are on the table. Let us shape a modern Germany together!