Brandenburg's MPs: Diets rise to 9,800 euros - what is behind it?

Brandenburg's MPs: Diets rise to 9,800 euros - what is behind it?

Brandenburg, Deutschland - In Brandenburg, a new regulation of the annual references of the state parliament members is imminent. From January 1, 2026, the compensation of the 88 MPs will be resolved, such as MAZ reported. The automatic adjustment of the diets remains, but is capped to a maximum of 3.5 percent per year to prevent excessive increases. This minimum limit means a monthly increase of around 300 euros, which increases the diets to around 9,800 euros. The Berlin statistical service provides the basis for these adjustments from data on income development in ten important industries.

A draft law on the change of the MPs law is brought in by the parliamentary managing directors of the coalition factions SPD and BSW as well as the CDU parliamentary group. This regulation should remain in force until the end of the 192029 election period. The last increase of 500 euros, which took place at the beginning of 2023, was perceived as uncomfortable. Critics such as the left and the AfD reject the regulation. Walter, the head of the left, described the new regulation as "lifted" and "cynical".

Financial aspects and reactions

The increase as of January 1, 2025 provides for an increase of over 500 euros due to the development of income and consumer prices. The Diets of the MPs are to increase from approx. 9,293 euros to just under 9,800 euros. This is done using an automatic procedure that has been used since 2017 and was previously exposed to the Corona pandemic. However, coupling to the development of income is considered a transparent path to ensure that the compensation increases appropriately.

The discussion about the increase also has an increase in retirement preliminary benefits, which will increase by 5.7 percent to around 2,185 euros. According to rbb24 it is unclear whether the state parliament will change the rules in the MPs' Act, which may affect the automatism to increase the diets.

political situation and outlook

The upcoming change in the law also includes an increase in rental costs for the constituency offices. The highest equipment will be raised by 200 euros, whereby only net rent rents will be reimbursed in the future. This means that MPs have to bear additional costs themselves from their compensation. An additional requirement of almost 500,000 euros is expected for the 2026 budget.

Parliamentary President Britta Stark presented the draft law on the change of the MPs Act, which prescribes the annual adjustment of the compensation. The data on income development is recorded annually and come from the Office for Statistics Berlin-Brandenburg. The report on income development will be published in September and thus provides the basis for future adjustments. The draft law, which also regulates further compensation, shows a direction towards a transparent and comprehensible definition of the diets, as in Landtag Brandenburg described.