German government subsidises the past instead of the future - opinion

The German government’s criticism of job cuts in Siemens’ fossil power generation business, and its rejection of VW’s call to cut diesel subsidies, reveal that it still believes that an outdated status quo could be preserved in the face of the “next industrial revolution”, writes Miriam Meckel in a commentary in the Wirtschaftswoche. “Of course, it would be nice if Siemens didn’t need to cut jobs. And, of course, it would be great if the diesel cars could stay on the road forever, without polluting the cities and without being overtaken by e-cars from China and the US. But delusions are not reality.” She concludes: “We’re only at the beginning. But Germany still prefers to subsidise the past, rather than the future”.

Find the commentary in German (behind paywall) here.