Coal commission must deal with jobs first – economy minister

Germany’s coal exit commission must deal with the question of new jobs for workers in the lignite regions before looking for an end date for coal, according to economy and energy minister Peter Altmaier. “We need a restructuring plan for each lignite region,” Altmaier told public broadcaster ARD, adding that the federal government must help with new jobs, for example in federal agencies and new research institutes. He emphasised that the federal government will not interfere in the coal exit commission’s work, but he as economy minister would “flesh out my ideas for the economic side. I believe this could help support the work of the commission”.

Find the video of the interview in German here.

For background, read the CLEW article Report about coal exit plan causes stir ahead of commission meeting and the Commission watch – Managing Germany’s coal phase-out.