Hubertus Heil says SPD’s result in Saxony-Anhalt is not enough

Hubertus Heil did not want the SPD to celebrate its result in Saxony-Anhalt. The former federal labour minister called the party’s 9.3 percent share “not enough” at a political gathering during the Gillamoos festival in Abensberg.

The SPD improved slightly, gaining 0.9 percentage points compared with the previous election. But its coalition partner, the CDU, fell by almost 20 points to 17.2 percent. Heil said the Social Democrats should not talk themselves into viewing the result positively.

“​​It must not be enough for us, that is too little,” Heil said. After the AfD’s success, he called for a stronger fight for democracy and a stronger SPD. He added that the party had also performed poorly in other elections this year and needed to improve.

Heil said people needed to know again what the Social Democrats stood for. He was also critical of the planned pension reform, although he said the pension commission had made many correct proposals. He rejected the planned abolition of penalty-free retirement after 45 years of contributions, arguing that anyone who had worked for 45 years should still be able to retire at 65.

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It must not be enough for us, that is too little.