At a time when farmers are staging mass national protests over austerity measures that they say will put them under tremendous financial strain, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his ministers are aiming to purchase three new, luxury VIP helicopters that will cost €200 million.
However, the budget cuts for farmers are just one austerity measure, with the total budget expected to cut €17 billion. The opposition is reacting with outrage over the news of the helicopter purchases, with the luxury helicopters designed for Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius to attend appointments in Germany.
The German armed forces are supposed to replace the aging Cougar helicopters currently stationed in Berlin, which have a range of 850 kilometers and a cruising speed of up to 315 kilometers per hour. The VIP helicopters became famous when the former Social Democrat (SPD) Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht took her son on holiday in one of them.
The German newspaper Bild says that government officials probably suspect that citizens will not be happy about spending taxpayers’ money in a time of crisis, which is why they wanted to hide the €200 million expense.
German MPs do not recall this type of spending ever being discussed in the budget committee, and the helicopters were not included in the December budget proposal. The news is especially surprising considering German police still have so-called VIP Super Puma helicopters, which government representatives can fly to emergency meetings.
The opposition is stunned, with Christian Democratic Union (CDU) budget expert Ingo Gädechens telling Bild that the government has lost touch with reality. He points out that the government wants to take €176 million from farmers this year, almost as much as the new helicopters cost.
“All of Germany is suffering from the collapse of fiscal policy. Austerity is everywhere,” the politician said. He added that it is obvious that Scholz’s travel convenience is the reason for the purchases and that ministers are more important than budgetary discipline.
However, Scholz may never get to experience the joy of riding a brand-new luxury helicopter, as the government cannot buy new helicopters without parliamentary approval. Now, it is up to the budget committee.