“I don’t have to prove to anyone that I can govern,” says Hessian Economics Minister Tarek Al-Wazir (The Greens). Anyone who doesn’t want to believe it will have it officially confirmed by top-class witnesses from the ranks of the competition. Prime Minister Boris Rhein (CDU), whom Al-Wazir wants to oust from the State Chancellery, regularly emphasizes how professionally he works with Al-Wazir. And Rhein’s predecessor Volker Bouffier (CDU) has just emphasized once again that Al-Wazir has “the place under control”.
The minister himself counts the introduction of the Germany Ticket as one of the most important results of his time at the head of the large house for economics, energy, transport and housing. Its blueprint was in fact the Hessian flat rates. But it remains to be seen whether the tickets sold nationwide for just 49 euros actually represent a “revolution,” as Al-Wazir himself believes. What is certain is that the price discount will cost billions, which will have to be raised by the general public. Critics doubt that it actually helps the environment.
More than half of the electricity generated in Hesse is generated using renewable energies, notes Al-Wazir. There is some truth in that too. But this high proportion does not result from an exorbitant expansion of solar and wind power plants, but rather from the decommissioning of nuclear and coal-fired power plants. Al-Wazir admits that the Hessians are “lagging behind” when the duration of approvals for wind turbines is compared nationwide. However, he pushed through the creation of new positions in the judiciary in order to speed up the proceedings. What seems to be more important is that Hesse, with its abundance of forests, is in principle less suitable for installing wind farms than other federal states.
Not enough bike paths
The General German Bicycle Club complains that only eleven percent of state roads are equipped with a cycle path. The network has only grown by 27 kilometers in the past nine years. But 100 kilometers of new cycle paths on state roads are needed every year. Al-Wazir explains that planning and approving cycle paths is as complex as highways.
However, other countries seem to be coping better with it. In any case, Hesse is in third-to-last place in a nationwide comparison, ahead of Rhineland-Palatinate and Thuringia. Al-Wazir’s stance on closing the gap in the A 44 motorway between northern and central Hesse triggered criticism from his own ranks, but the respect of his coalition partner.
The Hessian Minister of Transport had an ex officio duty to complete the project on behalf of the federal government. And he fulfilled this duty. Even if it contradicted the green program of “renovation instead of new construction”.
2,400 social housing units
Al-Wazir sees the “turnaround” in social housing as a “real success story”. After a decades-long downward spiral, the number of social housing units rose by a total of 2,400 in the past two years. However, the desired goal was of a different order of magnitude. The coalition agreement mentions 22,000 apartments by 2024.
The FDP’s top candidate, Stefan Naas, dismisses the “Great Frankfurt Arch”, with which the state has been promoting housing construction on railway lines around 30 minutes from Frankfurt Central Station in recent years, as a PR project. The association director of the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main regional association, Thomas Horn (CDU), speaks of a “great model of success”.
Al-Wazir took over responsibility for housing policy in 2019. The opposition also knows that in a crisis like the one the industry is currently experiencing, a state minister is almost powerless. Al-Wazir seems to be less interested in the Hessian economy in the narrower sense than, for example, in transport policy.
The move of the International Motor Show from Frankfurt to Munich did relatively little damage to Al-Wazir’s reputation. The inglorious role played by the former Frankfurt city leader Peter Feldmann (SPD) caused too much attention.
During the Corona crisis, the Economics Minister was one of the driving forces in enforcing the special fund decided by the coalition to financially deal with the pandemic. “Don’t skimp on the crisis,” was Al-Wazir’s credo. The state court declared the debt program unconstitutional.
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