Germany's Klingbeil demands further steps to combat petrol price rise

German Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil on Thursday pressed his conservative coalition partners for further measures to combat soaring fuel prices.

One day after the government's new law took effect restricting petrol stations to raising prices once a day, Klingbeil - who also serves as finance minister and the leader of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) - said he expected additional steps "will be needed to curb rising inflation at an early stage."

In a letter to Economy Minister Katherina Reiche and Thorsten Frei, the head of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's office, Klingbeil outlined three policies to tackle rising prices. “We can implement all of them quickly,” the vice chancellor argued.

To finance targeted relief measures, he advocated a windfall tax to limit excessive profits for companies benefiting from the crisis.

The minister is holding talks on the policy at EU level, but is demanding more backing from his coalition partners in the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU).

Furthermore, Klingbeil again advocated a flexible price cap on petrol, diesel and oil, similar to those in place in Belgium and Luxembourg.

“I therefore ask that the necessary preparations be made quickly so that legislation can be introduced without delay,” he wrote.

The costs of commuting to work and other forms of transport could also be reduced through an extension of the commuter allowance tax break, a relief payment or a temporary reduction in energy tax, he argued.

“We need a swift political decision on how we intend to use the proceeds from the excess profits tax,” said Klingbeil, while emphasizing that he was open to discussions on other proposals as long as they are brought forward quickly.