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The 120 representatives of the people of Lucerne discussed the finances of the coming years for more than six hours on Monday. Parliament is very government-oriented and consistently rejects overspending, as the voting results show.
The Lucerne government expects less than 49.8 million francs for next year, with a total expenditure of more than 3.8 billion francs. The same amount of deficit is forecast for the years up to 2024. In order for the 2021 budget to meet legal requirements, the government is loosening the debt brake for one year. The government is not proposing an austerity package or a tax increase.
This approach is well received by the vast majority of Parliament, as was already demonstrated in the debates on Monday morning. Shortly before the end of the first day of the session, the Cantonal Council approved the budget for next year with 94 votes against eleven. Only members of the Green parliamentary group belonged to field No. The tax rate will remain at 1.7 units over the next year. Parliament decided this with 92 votes to one for the FDP.
Parliament approved the task and the financial plan with 79 votes to 29. The same was recommended by the planning and finance committee, chaired by Armin Hartmann (SVP, Schlierbach). She approved the budget, as well as the task and the financial plan with 14 votes to zero and three abstentions. Most of the decisions made by the Cantonal Council were clear. Only in a few cases did the President of the Council, Ylfete Fanaj (SP, Lucerna) have to use the ATMs.
The Greens’ 56 million pack has no chance
With the yes to the budget and the adoption of the task and the financial plan, the catalog of demands of the Greens of 56 million also failed, in which the parliamentary group demanded additional spending for companies particularly affected by the corona pandemic. . The bourgeois-dominated parliament also wanted nothing to do with the additional spending on public transport, the energy promotion program, climate measures and the promotion of organic agriculture, despite the insistent words of the spokesmen of the Greens and the Social Democrats.
The cantonal parliament also showed little sympathy for the demands of the PS and the Greens to loosen the debt brake for more than a year. The corresponding comments on the task plan and finances were rejected by the CVP, SVP, FDP and GLP. The representatives of the people followed the government. Chief Financial Officer and District President Reto Wyss (CVP) said the debt brake did not have to be released for stocks. For SVP spokesperson Reto Frank (Meggen), relaxation for a year due to the pandemic is fine. “Normally we would not accept it.” Guido Roos (CVP, Wolhusen) and Patrick Hauser (FDP, Adligenswil) also campaigned for an exceptional suspension.
Green’s spokesperson, Urban Frye (Lucerne), for his part, argued that it was “absolutely negligent to insist on adherence to this instrument in the current crisis.” SP cantonal councilor David Roth (Lucerne) spoke of unnecessary shackles that you put on with the debt brake.
All factions have to face defeat.
But it was not only the council’s left wing who were shipwrecked with their concerns. The SVP also failed with its demand for a cautious investment policy, despite displays of sympathy from CVP and FDP circles. Both the CVP and the FDP suffered a defeat: the CVP’s request that 0.1 million francs each be included in the task and the financial plan as additional cantonal funds for regional forestry organizations with the same overall budget from 2022 was rejected.
The same happened with the FDP, which demanded an increase in the global budget for the Department of Agriculture and Forestry. CFO Reto Wyss successfully warned that this would interfere with the administration’s overall budgetary sovereignty.
The majority of the Cantonal Council wants to be more closely involved in financial planning.
However, the majority of the Cantonal Council disagreed with Wyss on four of the 22 comments on the task and the financial plan. Therefore, the government must now, against its will, “by the end of June 2021, with the participation of specialized commissions, develop possible solutions to be able to present a legally compatible estimate for 2022 and a legally compatible financial plan and task. by 2025 “. Wyss only received the support of the Greens and some members of the CVP. It was very illusory for them to have solutions by the end of June 2021. The comment inserted in the financial plan, attributed to the planning and finance committee, corresponds to strong shackles.
