PdF: program for the 2025 federal election

The PdF wants to lower the corporate income tax and replace the Gewerbesteuer (local trade tax) with a municipal surcharge. The platform says companies in Germany carry a much higher burden than the EU average.

Companies in Germany pay more tax than in many EU countries. The PdF wants to cut the tax on company profits. The local trade tax should go. Towns get a surcharge on another tax instead.

The PdF wants to use targeted tax advantages to encourage companies to invest, do research and innovate. Key industries, small businesses and structurally weak regions are to get particular support.

The PdF wants to reward companies that invest and do research. These companies should pay less tax. Important industries and small firms get special help. Weaker regions should get support too.

The PdF wants to reduce the administrative burden on companies, including through a single point of contact for tax and regulatory matters. The platform argues that long approval procedures and complex tax requirements hold back innovation and competitiveness.

The PdF wants less paperwork for companies. Companies should deal with only one government office. Reports and applications should work online. This should save companies time and money.

The PdF wants to scrap funding programs it considers ineffective or that mainly benefit large corporations and lobby groups. The money freed up would go more toward innovation at small and medium-sized companies, especially in digitalization and climate protection.

The government gives companies funding. The PdF wants to end programs that do not work. More money should go to small and medium-sized companies. Digital technology and climate protection are the main goals.

The PdF wants a legal ban on manufacturers deliberately designing products to become unusable early. Manufacturers would also have to state how long a product is expected to last and whether it can be repaired.

Some companies build devices so that they break early. This is called planned obsolescence. The PdF wants to ban it. Companies should have to say how long a device lasts. Those who use poor materials on purpose should be punished.

The PdF wants to prohibit manipulative online design, known as dark patterns, and to monitor misleading price and product claims more closely. A central complaints office would help consumers report violations.

Some websites trick customers. One example is a fake countdown on special offers. The PdF wants to ban such tricks. Companies should have to prove their discounts. Customers should be able to report violations to one central office.

The PdF supports trade that is as free as possible but wants trade agreements concluded only if they meet European environmental and social standards. It also wants to strengthen fair supply chains, intellectual property, and the fight against tax avoidance.

The PdF supports free trade. But trade deals should follow rules on the environment and social issues. A system like Fairtrade should promote fair trade. Patents and brands should be better protected. Tax loopholes should be closed.

The PdF wants to diversify trade so that the economy depends less on individual powers such as China. To that end, production in Europe is to be promoted, new markets opened up, and supply chains backed by the state.

The PdF wants less dependence on countries like China. Companies should make more goods in Europe. They should get tax breaks and subsidies for this. Germany should trade more with Africa and Southeast Asia. Weapons should also be bought and sold mainly within Europe.

The PdF wants to push through uniform Europe-wide size standards for clothing. Customers should then be able to pick the right size regardless of brand or manufacturer. This is meant to cut returns in online retail and ease the burden on retailers and the environment.

Clothing sizes differ from brand to brand today. So many people send back clothes they ordered. The PdF wants the same sizes across Europe. Then clothes will fit more often. That saves money and helps the environment.

The PdF wants to make understaffed occupations more attractive through higher pay and better working conditions, and to subsidize more training places. According to the platform, the background is that baby boomers will retire by 2035 and the working-age population will shrink.

Many jobs lack skilled workers, for example in nursing care. The PdF wants better pay and working conditions there. The government should fund more training places. A master craftsman title should count as much as a master's degree. The government should also support further training.

The PdF wants to make it easier for older people to keep working after reaching retirement age. This is meant to ease the skills shortage in the short term.

Some people want to keep working at retirement age. The PdF wants to make that easier. For example, they should get tax advantages. This should reduce the shortage of skilled workers.

The PdF wants moderate minimum wage increases tied to economic performance, reaching 15 euros step by step in the long run. Small businesses are to get relief so they are not overburdened.

The PdF wants to raise the minimum wage slowly. In the long run it should be 15 euros. The increases should fit the state of the economy. Small businesses should get help.

The PdF wants job seekers and vacancies to find each other more easily. It plans a state-funded digital job portal, incentives to move to regions short of skilled workers, and coordinated training programs.

Job seekers and open jobs often do not match. The PdF wants to fund a digital job portal. People who move for a job should get money and benefits. Schools and companies should develop fitting courses.

The PdF wants a legal entitlement to work from home wherever the job allows it. In addition, state-funded pilot projects are to test the four-day week at full pay, and flexible working-time models are to be promoted.

The PdF wants a right to work from home. This applies only if the job allows it. Companies should be able to test the four-day week. The state should support these tests. Working hours should become more flexible.

The PdF wants to greatly simplify applications for Grundsicherung (basic income support) and other benefits and to raise the exempt allowances in basic income support. A fund would ease the burden on single women, who the platform says are hit especially often by old-age poverty.

Many older people are poor. Some do not apply for help because the forms are hard. The PdF wants to make the forms easier. Older people should be allowed to keep more of their own money. There should be a special fund for single women.

The PdF wants day centers and meeting places for older people in every neighborhood and support for volunteer visiting services. The platform points to the growing number of seniors living alone who are affected by loneliness.

Many older people live alone and feel lonely. The PdF wants meeting places for them in every neighborhood. Ride services should bring people there. Volunteer visitors should get money and training. Simple apps should help people stay in touch.

The PdF wants to ease the financial burden on young people with a youth allowance against higher prices and with investment in social housing and dormitories. It is responding to young people's worries about inflation, expensive rents and old-age poverty.

Many young people worry about money. The PdF wants to pay them an allowance because prices are rising. The state should build cheap apartments and dorms for young people. Pensions should also change so young people are not poor later.

The PdF wants to add a capital-funded component to the statutory pension system. Returns from capital markets are meant to pay for part of pension benefits and make the system less dependent on rising contributions.

The PdF wants to invest part of the pension money. The profits should help pay for pensions. This way, contributions should rise less. The money should be spread widely and invested for a long time.

The PdF wants to expand workplace and private retirement provision. It plans larger tax advantages, government subsidies, and a mandatory workplace pension model so that more employees receive an occupational pension.

The PdF wants more people to save for old age themselves. There should be tax benefits for this. The state should also give extra money. A workplace pension should become mandatory. That is a pension through the employer.

The PdF wants all citizens to pay into the statutory pension system, including the self-employed and freelancers. This is meant to reduce old-age poverty and give the pension system a broader financial base.

The PdF wants everyone to pay into the public pension. This includes self-employed people. Many of them save too little for old age. Fewer people should be poor in old age. The pension fund would then get more money.

The PdF wants to loosen the Schuldenbremse (debt brake) so that the federal government and the states can borrow more for investment. The platform argues that the current rule holds back spending on infrastructure, digitalization and climate protection.

The debt brake limits how much money the state may borrow. The PdF wants to raise this limit. The state should be able to borrow more. It should use the money for roads, networks and climate protection.

The PdF wants to streamline the tax system: small special taxes would be dropped, VAT exceptions removed and tax returns prepared automatically. The platform justifies this with the system's complexity and heavy administrative burden.

The PdF thinks taxes in Germany are too complicated. Old small taxes should go. The tax return should be made automatically. People only check it and confirm with one click.

The PdF wants to reshape the income tax schedule so that low and middle incomes pay less and high incomes pay more. This includes a new 50 percent rate for very high incomes and automatic adjustment for inflation.

The PdF wants to change the tax on income. People with low or middle pay should pay less. People who earn very much should pay more. From 400,000 euros a year, a rate of 50 percent should apply.

The PdF wants to use legislation to stop tax avoidance, especially by large companies, and to give tax offices more staff. It also considers a minimum tax when businesses are transferred.

Some big companies use tricks to pay little tax. The PdF wants to close these gaps in the law. Tax offices should get more staff. A minimum tax could also apply when a company is handed on.

The PdF wants to levy a wealth tax again. It points to growing wealth inequality and high public debt; the state is to gain more financial room.

The PdF wants a tax on large fortunes again. It says wealth is shared more and more unequally. The state should have more money this way. Jobs should stay protected.

The PdF wants to scrap the Solidaritätszuschlag (solidarity surcharge) for companies immediately. According to the platform, its original purpose of funding German reunification no longer applies, and the levy reduces room for investment.

The Soli is a surcharge on taxes. It was once meant to pay for German unity. The PdF wants to end it for companies right away. Companies should then have more money to invest.

The PdF wants companies to be able to deduct spending on energy-saving machinery and equipment from their taxes immediately and in full. This is meant to lower operating costs and speed up the replacement of outdated technology.

Many companies have old machines that use a lot of energy. The PdF wants to make buying efficient machines easier. Companies should deduct the cost from their taxes right away. Those who save energy should get more tax benefits.

The PdF wants to push back unreported economic activity with a mix of tougher penalties, public education, digitalization and incentives. The platform sees the shadow economy as a drain on public revenue and on trust in the tax system.

Some people and companies work without paying taxes. This is called the shadow economy. The PdF wants to fight it with higher penalties. People who report themselves should be able to avoid punishment. Campaigns should explain why taxes matter.

The PdF wants to replace Ehegattensplitting (joint tax splitting for married couples) with individual taxation plus a transferable allowance for families. Child tax allowances would drop to the constitutional minimum, with the freed-up money going to low-income families.

The PdF wants to change the tax for married couples. Each person should pay tax alone. Families should get a tax-free amount they can share. Support should depend on children, not on marriage. Poor families should get more money.

The PdF wants to exempt apprenticeship pay and working students' earnings from wage tax up to a cap. This is meant to ease the financial burden on young people so they can focus on their training or studies.

The PdF wants to help apprentices and students. They should pay no wage tax on their pay. This applies up to a certain limit. That leaves them more money.

The PdF wants to advance the construction of barrier-free, age-appropriate housing through a dedicated funding program and to give tax breaks for multigenerational housing projects. Retrofits of existing homes would also get financial support so older people can stay in familiar surroundings.

The PdF wants more homes for older people. These homes should have no steps or barriers. The state should help pay for building them. Changes to existing homes should also get money. Homes where young and old live together should get support too.

The PdF calls for a parental leave model for self-employed people with a legal entitlement. In its view they are currently disadvantaged compared with employees because they often cannot afford time off work.

Self-employed people have no right to parental leave so far. The PdF wants to change that. They should also get a legal right. This should help them combine family and work.

The PdF wants to invest in daycare centers and home-based childcare and create more places. Childcare is to become more flexible so that family and work fit together better, especially for shift workers and single parents.

The PdF wants more places in daycare. There should be more staff per child. Daycare should be open longer and more flexibly. This helps parents who work shifts. It also helps single parents.

The PdF wants to adjust Elterngeld (parental allowance) continuously to inflation and give parents more leeway to draw it at the same time. Kindergeld (child benefit) would be paid automatically without an application to spare families paperwork.

The PdF wants to change the parental allowance. It should rise when prices rise. Both parents should be able to get it at the same time for longer. Child benefit should come on its own. Parents would no longer need to apply.

The PdF wants to introduce flexible working-time models so that both parents can combine work and family on equal terms. Paid work and care work are to be shared more fairly, and conventional gender roles broken up.

The PdF wants flexible working hours for parents. Both parents should be able to work and care for children. Companies with good offers for families should get support. Parents should return to work more easily. There should be more part-time training for this.

The PdF wants family policy measures reviewed regularly by independent experts and a joint body of the federal government, the states and municipalities. The platform argues that differing standards and priorities across these levels make consistent implementation difficult.

The PdF wants regular checks of family policy. Independent experts should do the checks. The federal government, the states and the towns should meet in one group. That way the same rules should apply everywhere.

The PdF considers existing protection structures for children inadequate. It wants uniform procedures for detecting violence, more shelters, better networking among agencies and long-term therapy services.

The PdF wants to protect children better from violence. Schools, daycare centers and doctors should spot violence earlier. There should be more safe places for children. Agencies should work together better. Affected children should get help for a long time.

The PdF opposes an immediate legal entitlement to all-day care starting at elementary school age. It points to staff shortages, costs for municipalities and risks to quality. Funding, skilled staff and standards should be secured first.

The PdF does not want a quick legal right to all-day care. A legal right means parents can demand a place. The PdF says staff and money are missing. First there should be more trained staff and good facilities.

The PdF wants to revive the discontinued federal program "Sprach-Kitas" (language daycare centers) and give it a much larger budget. In addition, every daycare center would need a binding language support plan so that all children receive systematic help.

The PdF wants to restart the "Sprach-Kitas" program. It should get much more money. Every daycare should have a fixed plan for language support. Staff should be able to get extra training. This helps children learn German better.

The PdF wants trainee early childhood educators to be paid in every type of training program in order to address the staff shortage. It also wants early childhood care to be regulated uniformly at the national level.

The PdF wants to pay people who train as childcare workers. They should earn money during training. Nobody should need student aid for it. Daycare rules should be the same all over Germany. Ads should bring more people into the job.

The PdF wants to replace the states' education administrations with a central federal agency. A nationwide curriculum and centrally organized final exams are meant to ensure the same standards everywhere. The platform cites educational inequality and problems when families move between states.

The PdF wants one school system for all of Germany. Today each state makes its own rules. In the future a federal agency should be in charge. The curriculum and final exams should be the same everywhere. Children should also have to attend daycare.

The PdF wants a flexible school system that supports students according to their interests and strengths. It rejects full inclusion and wants to keep or reintroduce special schools. The platform cites overburdened teachers and falling classroom standards as reasons.

The PdF wants children to switch more easily between school tracks. Each child should learn according to their strengths. The PdF is against full inclusion. Inclusion means children with and without disabilities learn together. Special schools should stay or come back.

The PdF wants vocational and academic education to be treated as equal, both formally and in public esteem. In the platform's view, the education system focuses too heavily on the Abitur and university, which neglects the skilled trades and worsens the shortage of skilled workers.

The PdF wants to treat the Meister and the master's degree the same. The Meister is a top qualification in the skilled trades. The master's is a university degree. Schools should teach more practical skills. Trade jobs should get more respect.

The PdF wants sports and swimming lessons to be a binding part of the curriculum from the first day of school. The platform points to the healthy development of children and teenagers and says many schools lack a firm rule.

The PdF wants sports and swimming to be required at school. This should apply from first grade. Children should try many kinds of sports. All children should be able to exercise, no matter what family they come from.

The PdF wants schools to teach practical life skills in the final grades, such as taxes, insurance and personal finance. According to the platform, many young people leave school without this knowledge, especially when their parents cannot help.

The PdF wants students to learn things for everyday life. Examples are tax returns, insurance, finding an apartment and handling money. This should happen in the last school years. That way all young people should have similar chances.

The PdF wants schools to teach students early on how to use common IT tools and social media. Teachers are to receive targeted training for this.

The PdF wants more lessons about digital media. Children should learn computer programs early. They should also learn how to handle social media. Teachers should get training for this.

The PdF wants to reform the student loans offered by KfW, the state development bank. Interest is to be dropped or capped, because the party considers the current terms inappropriate for a state bank.

Students can borrow money from KfW. KfW is a bank owned by the state. The PdF says the interest there is too high. It wants no interest or a limit on interest.

The PdF wants to give all adults access to free or subsidized continuing education, especially on digitalization and new technologies. It justifies this with technological change, which it says requires constant learning.

The PdF wants courses for adults. The courses should be free or cheap. They are mainly about digital technology. Companies and universities should take part.

The PdF wants to make teacher training more practical through dual degree programs and attract career changers with appealing conditions. Teachers are also to be evaluated regularly and relieved of paperwork, in order to address the teacher shortage and improve teaching.

There are not enough teachers, especially in rural areas. The PdF wants more practical training. People from other jobs should become teachers more easily. Teaching should be rated regularly. Teachers should write fewer reports.

The PdF calls for a special budget to renovate and expand school buildings. In addition, all schools are to get broadband and modern technology, and IT is to be firmly anchored in the curricula.

The PdF wants to repair and expand schools. There should be extra money for this. All schools should get fast internet. Teachers must take courses on computer technology.

The PdF wants to respond to discipline problems and violence in schools with police presence, security checks as a last resort and consistent penalties. It adds prevention programs, more funding for schools in disadvantaged areas and closer involvement of parents.

The PdF sees more violence and disruption in schools. At some schools, police should be present regularly. There may also be checks for weapons. For serious offenses, students may have to leave the school. There should also be training against violence.

The PdF wants BAföG, the state student aid, to be granted in the future without counting parents' income. In the party's view, this would strengthen educational fairness and make students more independent of their parents.

BAföG is money from the state for students. Today it depends on what the parents earn. The PdF wants to change that. The parents' income should no longer matter.

The PdF wants to offer researchers permanent positions after the postdoc phase and raise state core funding for universities. Pressure from publication counts and third-party funding is to ease so that long-term and non-profit research gets more room.

Many researchers only have short-term contracts. The PdF wants permanent jobs for them. Universities should get more money from the state. Research that makes no profit should also get more help.

The PdF wants to make care work more attractive and secure the supply of care. Its plans include a permanent tax-free bonus, statutory minimum staffing levels, state-funded care facilities, and higher subsidies for home care services.

The PdF wants more people to work in care. Care workers should get a lasting bonus without tax. A law should set the lowest number of staff. The state should pay for its own care homes. Home care services should get more money.

The PdF wants to make nursing care more attractive through better working conditions, higher pay and more training places. In addition, a nationwide program would support volunteers who help care for seniors.

There are not enough trained workers in elder care. The PdF wants to pay care workers better. Working hours should fit family life better. There should be more training places. Volunteers should get support too.

The PdF wants to build a nationwide network of easily accessible mental health counseling centers for young people and make the topic a fixed part of everyday school life. The platform names excessive digital use, social media and bullying at school as sources of strain.

Many young people have mental health problems. The PdF wants counseling centers for them everywhere. Schools should get psychologists and programs against bullying. Young people should learn to use phones and the internet well.

The PdF supports the hospital reform so far and calls for further steps to ensure nationwide care. Hospitals would be paid for keeping services available and would specialize, and emergency care would be reorganized.

The PdF wants to continue the hospital reform. Hospitals should get money for their basic costs. They should specialize in certain treatments. Hospitals should have emergency centers. Paramedics should be allowed to do more.

The PdF wants to remove fee budget caps for general practitioners so that every service is paid in full. Municipalities would also find it easier to set up medical centers, and a single fee schedule would apply to all doctors.

Today, family doctors are not paid in full for every treatment. The PdF wants to change that. Then family doctors should take on more patients. Towns should find it easier to open medical centers. One single fee schedule should apply to all doctors.

The PdF wants to make prevention a fixed part of the health system and create financial incentives for it. It points out that only about three percent of health spending goes to prevention.

The PdF wants to keep people from getting sick in the first place. There should be more preventive care. Health insurers and doctors should be rewarded for it. Companies should get tax benefits when they promote their workers' health.

On vaccination, the PdF relies on voluntary choice, scientific evidence and public information. It considers a legal vaccine mandate possible only in exceptional danger situations, and the state should give special protection to sensitive settings such as schools and care homes.

The PdF wants people to decide for themselves about vaccines. A vaccine mandate should only be possible in special danger situations. The state should give extra protection in schools, daycare and care homes. The party wants clear and simple information about vaccines.

The PdF wants to create 1,600 additional statutory insurance licenses for psychotherapists, mainly in rural and structurally weak regions. It also wants to end the sale of these licenses together with practices, because the party sees the costs as an obstacle to care for publicly insured patients.

Many people wait a long time for psychotherapy. The PdF wants 1,600 new licenses for therapists. Such a license allows a therapist to treat publicly insured patients. Today, therapists buy these licenses for a lot of money. The PdF wants to end this trade.

The PdF wants the federal subsidy to statutory health insurance to grow regularly and wants contributions for groups such as Bürgergeld recipients adjusted. The program points to rising spending and a record-high contribution rate as the background.

Public health insurance keeps getting more expensive. The PdF wants the federal government to pay in more money. This money should rise regularly. Contributions for people on Bürgergeld (citizen's income) should be adjusted. Money should not be spent on unneeded treatment.

The PdF wants people with statutory and private health insurance to be treated the same when booking appointments, especially with specialists. It also wants to support medical centers and polyclinics and cut red tape to secure care.

The PdF wants equal doctor's appointments for everyone. It should not matter if you have private or public insurance. The state should support new medical centers. Doctors should have less paperwork.

The PdF wants to create a central body that develops and implements uniform digital standards in health care. Telemedicine is to be expanded and the number of statutory health insurers reviewed.

The PdF wants health care to be more digital. One central office should set the rules for this. There should be more doctor visits over the internet. The PdF wants to check if Germany needs so many health insurers.

The PdF wants to tackle obesity with nutrition and exercise education in daycare centers and schools and with legal requirements for food served in communal facilities. A national framework plan is to set binding rules for healthy and sustainable meals.

The PdF wants people to eat healthier. Children should learn about food and exercise in daycare and school. There should be fixed rules for food in schools and cafeterias. Labels on food should be clearer.

The PdF wants to overhaul the Betäubungsmittelgesetz (Narcotics Act) so that substances are classified by their actual harm. Less dangerous substances could be supplied in a controlled way while especially harmful ones remain targeted; prevention and supervised consumption sites are to be expanded.

The PdF wants new rules for drugs. How dangerous a drug is should decide the rules. People should be able to get less dangerous drugs in a controlled way. Very dangerous drugs stay banned. There should be more help and information.

The PdF wants to make it easier for qualified skilled workers from abroad to enter the German labor market. A simpler procedure is meant to attract workers in a targeted way without relying on large-scale recruitment.

The PdF wants skilled workers from abroad to come more easily. The process should be simpler. But the party does not want very large recruitment drives. Home countries should not lose all their skilled workers.

The PdF wants refugees to receive a work permit within ten days at most and to be placed in jobs as a priority. Language courses and the recognition of foreign qualifications are to be better aligned with this. According to the platform, this would speed up integration and relieve the welfare system.

Refugees should be allowed to work quickly. The permit should take 10 days at most. Language courses should take place outside working hours. Foreign qualifications should be accepted more easily.

The PdF wants to set up migration centers in safe third countries where asylum procedures take place outside Europe. This is meant to make procedures orderly and spare people seeking protection dangerous smuggling routes.

The PdF wants centers in safe countries outside Europe. People should apply for asylum there. Asylum means protection for persecuted people. Then they would not need dangerous routes with smugglers.

The PdF calls for a European asylum system based on solidarity that distributes asylum seekers across all EU states and supports countries at the external borders through a joint fund. At the same time, the external borders are to be monitored effectively and smugglers pursued across Europe.

All EU countries should take in asylum seekers. A shared fund should help countries at the EU border. The EU should watch its outer borders better. The countries should act together against smugglers.

The PdF wants to make social benefits for people seeking protection partly dependent on how far their integration has progressed. In addition, asylum seekers are to explicitly accept the basic values of the Grundgesetz (Basic Law) when they apply.

Refugees should make an effort to integrate. Part of their benefits should depend on that. Language courses are one example. When applying for asylum, they should accept the values of the German constitution.

The PdF wants refugees to lose their right of residence if they commit crimes in Germany. It also stresses that asylum is in principle only temporary and ends when the reasons for fleeing no longer apply.

A refugee who commits a crime should not be allowed to stay. Asylum should only last for a certain time. Protection ends when the reasons for fleeing are gone. Then people should return home.

The PdF wants to revise and tighten the laws against discrimination and hate crime. Anti-discrimination offices are to be expanded, and minorities are to get easier access to education and work. According to the platform, the goal is better protection against racism and antisemitism.

The PdF wants stricter laws against discrimination. Discrimination means treating people worse, for example because of where they come from. Advice offices should get more money. Minorities should find it easier to learn and work.

The PdF wants to protect the free practice of religion for everyone and strictly uphold the separation of church and state. It rejects religious extremism and relies on prevention through education to counter it.

Everyone should be free to live their faith. The state should not favor any religion. Church and state should stay separate. Education should help against religious extremism.

The PdF wants to raise the number of shelter places for women affected by violence to 21,000 and fund women's shelters and counseling centers uniformly through a federal law. The platform considers existing services inadequate, especially in rural areas.

Many women experience violence. Women's shelters are often full and short of money. The PdF wants 21,000 shelter places. One law for all of Germany should settle the funding. Rural areas should have enough help too.

The PdF wants to legalize abortion in the first twelve weeks and regulate it outside the Criminal Code. Mandatory counseling would become a voluntary offer, and statutory health insurers would cover the costs. The platform justifies this with women's self-determination and equal access regardless of income.

The PdF wants to allow abortions up to the twelfth week. The rules should no longer be part of criminal law. Counseling should be voluntary. Health insurance should pay the costs.

The PdF wants to make electricity cheaper for companies by cutting the electricity tax to the EU minimum and giving energy-intensive firms a state-supported price. Energy companies would have to disclose their pricing so that relief is passed on.

Electricity is expensive for companies in Germany. The PdF wants to cut the electricity tax sharply. Firms that use a lot of power get a cheap price from the state. Energy companies must show how they set their prices.

The PdF wants to better prepare cities and towns for heat, heavy rain and drought. To do so, resilient infrastructure, digital early warning systems and research on water use are to be expanded.

The climate is changing. The PdF wants to better protect cities and villages from heat and floods. Cities should get more green spaces. Warning systems should alert people earlier about bad weather.

The PdF wants to speed up the expansion of wind and solar power by fast-tracking permits in priority zones. It also calls for heavy investment in power grids and storage, plus funding for solar installations and storage research.

The PdF wants more power from wind and sun. Permits should be faster. The state should put a lot of money into power grids and storage. Solar panels on houses should get money from the state.

The PdF wants to fund research in Germany on new reactor types and nuclear fusion. It also wants to examine whether nuclear power plants can be operated or brought back online.

The PdF wants to keep researching nuclear power. This includes small new reactors and nuclear fusion. Germany should work with other countries. The PdF wants to check if nuclear plants can run again.

The PdF wants to support energy storage to balance out fluctuating generation from renewable sources. It also wants more capacity in power lines and lower grid fees.

Power from wind and sun goes up and down. So the PdF wants to support power storage. Power lines should be able to carry more electricity. Fees for using the power grid should go down.

The PdF wants to advance the shift to an economy that reuses raw materials and avoids waste. This includes a comprehensive right to repair, recycling quotas, minimum product lifespans and tax advantages for resource-saving businesses.

The PdF wants less to be thrown away. Raw materials should be used longer. This is called a circular economy. Customers should be able to get devices repaired. Manufacturers should offer spare parts at fair prices.

The PdF wants to link protected areas through green corridors and reduce pesticide use. Farmers are to receive incentives for biodiversity-friendly practices, and cities are to run their own programs for more nature.

Many animals and plants are under threat. The PdF wants to connect protected areas with each other. Farmers should use fewer chemicals against pests. Cities should plant wildflower meadows.

The PdF wants to support greening of roofs and facades with government grants, without rents going up. Cities are also to create connected green spaces to improve air quality, the local climate and biodiversity.

The PdF wants more plants in cities. The state should give money for green roofs and walls. Rents should not go up because of this. Cities should create larger green areas.

The PdF wants to preserve forests, reforest new areas, and promote tree species that cope better with climate change. The platform justifies this with the role of forests as carbon stores and their importance for water balance and biodiversity.

The PdF wants to protect forests. New trees should be planted. These trees should cope well with heat and dry weather. Forests store the gas CO₂ and are home to many animals.

The PdF wants to phase out environmentally harmful fishing methods such as bottom trawling in marine protected areas by 2030 at the latest. Strict monitoring is meant to ensure that fishing rules are followed.

The PdF wants to protect the seas. Some nets are dragged along the sea floor. That harms nature. In protected areas, these nets should be banned by 2030. The state should check fishing strictly.

The PdF wants to end practices such as tethering after binding transition periods and give financial support to farms with animal-friendly housing. An animal welfare label on products is meant to create transparency.

The PdF wants farm animals to live better. Bad ways of keeping animals should end after a fixed deadline. Farms that treat animals well should get money. Products should show how the animals lived.

The PdF wants to manage wildlife populations through targeted hunting to curb disease, overpopulation, and invasive species. At the same time, zoos and circuses are to face stricter rules on keeping wild animals.

The PdF wants hunters to hunt wild animals in a targeted way. This should keep diseases from spreading. There should also not be too many animals. Zoos and circuses should follow stricter rules. Animals there should live close to nature.

The PdF wants a legal ban on breeding that serves only appearance and damages the animals' health. The pet trade is to be monitored more strictly and made fully traceable.

Some animals are bred only to look a certain way. This makes them sick. The PdF wants to ban that. The pet trade should be checked strictly. People should always know where an animal comes from.

The PdF wants to push back animal testing through stricter laws and replace it entirely in the long run. To that end it calls for major investment in animal-free research methods.

The PdF wants fewer tests on animals. Later there should be none at all. The state should spend a lot of money on other methods. Examples are computer models or tests with human cells.

The PdF wants to prohibit the fur trade entirely because, in its view, it involves great animal suffering. In the leather industry, the whole animal should be used to avoid waste.

The PdF wants to ban the trade in fur. It says animals suffer a lot for fur. For leather, the whole animal should be used. That way less is wasted.

The PdF wants to base catch quotas on scientific data and set up protected areas in the North Sea and Baltic Sea to prevent overfishing. Coastal fishers would receive financial help, mainly for switching to gentler fishing methods.

There are fewer and fewer fish in the seas. The PdF wants to set catch limits based on science. The North Sea and Baltic Sea should get protected areas. Coastal fishers should get money.

The PdF wants to raise the tax refund on agricultural diesel and give farmers a tax-free diesel allowance. The aim is to lower farms' costs and make them more competitive.

Farmers pay tax on diesel for their machines. The PdF wants them to get more of it back. A set amount of diesel should be fully tax-free. Machines that use other fuels should also bring tax benefits.

The PdF wants to legally require supermarkets to pass on unsold food. It also wants to subsidize plant-based alternatives and reduce the share of meat in communal catering to benefit health and the environment.

The PdF wants less food to end up in the trash. Supermarkets should have to give away leftover food. Plant-based food should get money from the state. Cafeterias and schools should serve less meat.

The PdF wants to invest in regional production chains to make Germany less dependent on food imports. Cooperatives and regional processing centers are meant to give producers a larger share of the value created.

Germany buys a lot of fruit and vegetables from abroad. The PdF wants more food from the region. Farmers should be able to team up. That way they should earn more for their goods.

The PdF wants to restructure farm subsidies so that 30 percent of farmland is organically managed by 2030. It also calls for stricter rules on keeping livestock and a state fund to help farmers pay for better housing systems.

The PdF wants more organic farming. By 2030, 30 percent of farmland should be organic. Stricter rules should apply to keeping animals. The state should give farmers money for better barns. Small farms should get special help.

The PdF wants to back cellular agriculture, meaning the production of meat and dairy without conventional livestock farming, through research programs. It cites animal welfare, environmental protection and Germany's competitiveness as reasons.

Meat and milk can also be made from cells. This does not need animals in barns. The PdF wants to support research on this. It says this helps animals and the environment.

The PdF wants the EU to supply more of its own staple foods and inputs such as fertilizer. Domestic production would be promoted and remaining imports spread across more supplier countries. The platform points to the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's attack on Ukraine.

The PdF wants the EU to produce its own food. This covers basic foods and fertilizer. The EU should support local farmers. What the EU must buy should come from many countries. This should prevent shortages in a crisis.

The PdF wants a comprehensive modernization of the rail network, with 75 percent electrified by 2030. Dilapidated lines are to be repaired first and closed lines, especially in rural areas, put back into service. The party cites outdated equipment, overload, and frequent delays as reasons.

The PdF wants to renew the rail network. By 2030, 75 percent of the lines should have electric power. Broken lines should be fixed first. Old lines in the countryside should open again. This should make trains more punctual and cleaner.

The PdF wants to pay for expanding, digitizing and maintaining the rail network through an earmarked special fund. It also wants to subsidize rail freight and simplify fares for passengers.

The PdF wants to spend a lot of money on trains. A special pot of money will pay for this. Rail technology should become more modern. More goods should travel by train. Tickets should become simpler.

The PdF calls for investment in expanding and maintaining roads, bridges and rail lines, arguing that their poor condition causes congestion and high logistics costs. In rural areas, it wants to subsidize on-demand taxi services instead of blanket transit funding.

The PdF wants to repair and expand roads, bridges and rail lines. Rural areas should get more ways to travel. The party wants to help pay for taxis on request there. It also wants more bike paths and charging stations.

The PdF wants to curb false news through mandatory labels for AI content, detection software, public education and obligations for platforms. It sees disinformation as a threat to democratic opinion-forming but wants to protect free speech in the process.

The PdF wants to act against fake news online. Images and videos made by AI should carry a label. Platforms should do more against fake news and spend money on it. People should learn how to spot fake news. Free speech should stay protected.

The PdF wants to digitize all administrative procedures and make them available through one central online portal. This is meant to cut costs and processing times, while visiting an office in person should remain possible.

The PdF wants people to do all government paperwork online. There should be one central website for this. That should save time and money. Anyone who wants can still go to the office in person.

The PdF wants to accelerate the rollout of fiber and mobile networks through more competition, better regulation, and public subsidies. It notes that Germany, with 43.2 percent fiber coverage, lags behind other countries.

The PdF wants faster internet all over Germany. Fiber lines should be built more quickly. Companies should not build twice in the same place. The state should help companies pay for it.

The PdF supports a KRITIS-Dachgesetz (umbrella law on critical infrastructure) with uniform nationwide minimum standards for protecting sectors such as energy, transport, and health. Operators would have to report security incidents immediately.

The PdF wants to protect important facilities better. Examples are power grids, transport, and hospitals. A new law should set the same rules everywhere. Operators must report attacks and failures right away.

The PdF wants to create a national cybersecurity center to improve coordination among government bodies, businesses, and international partners. It also calls for funding research into security technology and for enough money to respond quickly to new threats.

The PdF wants to build a center for safety on the internet. The state, companies, and other countries work together there. The party also wants more research on safe technology. There should be enough money for this.

The PdF wants to build a strong AI industry in Germany and implement the EU's AI Act in a way that does not hold back innovation. It proposes AI centers for small and mid-sized firms, state-funded data pools, and support for start-ups, while keeping data protection standards high.

The PdF wants more companies in Germany to work on artificial intelligence, or AI. The EU rules for AI should not weigh too heavily on companies. There should be centers that help small companies use AI. Young companies should get money and help.

The PdF wants research into using blockchain technology in public administration and democracy and wants to support companies developing such solutions. Decentralized payment systems such as cryptocurrencies are to be promoted, provided they are clearly regulated. In the party's view, the potential of this technology has so far gone largely unused.

Blockchain is a technology that stores data safely on many computers. The PdF wants to study how public offices can use it. It wants to help companies that work with it. Digital money like Bitcoin should be promoted. But there should be clear rules for it.

The PdF wants to create a new European body for digital resilience and sovereignty and to buy components for critical infrastructure primarily from European companies. Only components certified under strict European standards would be allowed in critical networks. The party points to risks from opaque supply chains and single points of failure.

Important networks for power, transport, and phones depend on computer technology. The PdF wants to protect this technology better. A new European office should make rules for it. Parts should mainly come from European companies. All parts need a strict check.

The PdF wants to repeal the Netzwerkdurchsetzungsgesetz (NetzDG, Germany's Network Enforcement Act) because, in its view, the law restricts free speech disproportionately and achieves little. It also calls for clearer standards, transparent procedures, and stronger protection of fundamental rights under the EU's Digital Services Act.

The NetzDG is a law against illegal content on social networks. The PdF wants to get rid of this law. It says the law limits free speech too much. An EU law for platforms should also become clearer. Basic rights should be better protected.

The PdF wants to write net neutrality into law and prevent any weakening of it. The party sees it as a precondition for free speech, fair competition, and innovation.

Net neutrality means all data on the internet travels at the same speed. The PdF wants to put this into a law. Rich companies should not be able to buy a faster line. Network operators should not charge big providers extra fees.

The PdF wants software paid for with tax money to be released as open source and publicly funded content to be freely accessible. In the party's view, this promotes transparency, digital sovereignty, education, and innovation.

The state pays for software, research, and data with tax money. The PdF wants everyone to be able to use these things freely. The code of state software should be open. Digital works from museums and libraries should be free of charge.

The PdF wants to enshrine in law a right to make private copies of digitally purchased content. In addition, a right to interoperability is meant to ensure that digital services and devices work together, reducing dependence on large providers.

The PdF wants new rights for users. People who buy digital content may copy it for themselves. Devices and services should work together. People should be able to move their data easily to another provider.

The PdF wants to speed up fiber rollout in rural and economically weak areas with a state-funded program. It also wants a central online portal that lets citizens and businesses handle government paperwork digitally.

The PdF wants to support fast internet in rural areas. The state should pay part of it. People should be able to file forms with offices online. One big online portal should make this possible.

The PdF wants more personnel for the security agencies, including specialists in cybercrime and counterterrorism. This is to be paired with modern technology, digital workflows and smoother cooperation between the federal and state governments.

The PdF wants more staff for the police and other security agencies. This includes experts against online crime and terror. The agencies should get modern technology. The federal government and the states should work together better.

The PdF rejects storing communications data without specific cause and instead backs the quick-freeze procedure when there is concrete suspicion. It also supports modernizing the Federal Police Act in a way that protects fundamental rights.

The PdF does not want data stored without a reason. It wants the quick-freeze method. With it, agencies secure data only when there is a suspicion. The law for the federal police should be updated.

The PdF wants to build up Germany's intelligence services so they can detect threats themselves rather than rely on tips from foreign agencies. To that end, staffing as well as technical and strategic capabilities are to grow.

The PdF wants to strengthen Germany's intelligence services. They should spot dangers early on their own. They should not depend on warnings from abroad. For this they should get more staff and better technology.

The PdF wants to fight extremism regardless of its ideological direction, whether right-wing, left-wing or religiously motivated. The security agencies are to be fully independent of politics in doing so.

The PdF is against all extremism. That covers right-wing, left-wing and religious extremism. The security agencies should work independently of politics. This is how the party wants to protect democracy.

The PdF wants to make domestic violence a separate criminal offense and raise sentencing ranges. It also calls for awareness campaigns and mandatory training for certain professions. According to the platform, protection against gender-based violence should become a priority for society as a whole.

The PdF wants tougher punishment for violence at home and in relationships. There should be a separate law for this crime. Sentences should be higher. There should be more public information too. Doctors and lawyers should get training.

The PdF wants to cap the number of positions politicians may hold at once and tighten the rules on awarding contracts to relatives and party-affiliated organizations. This is meant to strengthen credibility and fairness in the political system.

The PdF wants clear rules for politicians. Politicians should not hold too many positions at once. Contracts for relatives should only be possible in an open process. Anyone who misuses public money should face quick consequences.

The PdF wants to strengthen the justice system with more staff, better pay and digitalization. This is meant to shorten proceedings and secure trust in the rule of law.

The PdF wants to strengthen the courts. Judges and prosecutors should get more pay. There should be more staff. Files should be digital everywhere. This should make court cases faster.

The PdF wants to involve citizens more in political decisions through digital citizens' parliaments and citizens' assemblies. This is meant to counter disenchantment with politics and make decisions more transparent and better legitimized.

People should have more of a say. They should be able to join debates of the Bundestag online. Citizens' assemblies should give recommendations. A citizens' assembly is a group of citizens who discuss a topic. Parliaments must deal with what they recommend.

The PdF wants to strengthen referendums at the federal level through a dedicated law and give them a firm institutional basis. This would let the public decide key questions directly, as a complement to representative democracy.

The PdF wants stronger referendums at the national level. In a referendum, citizens vote on a question themselves. A new law should make this possible. Groups that work for democracy should also get more support.

The PdF wants to set up a digital platform for petitions, feedback and participation. The federal government would develop it as open-source software and give it to states and municipalities free of charge. Results of citizen participation would be publicly documented.

The PdF wants a website for citizen participation. People can submit concerns, join debates and vote there. The federal government builds the site. States and towns can use it for free. Everyone should be able to see the results.

The PdF wants to abolish the five-percent threshold or replace it with alternatives, arguing that it disadvantages small parties and leaves votes unrepresented. It also calls for backup votes or ranked-choice voting.

Parties now need five percent of the vote to enter the Bundestag. The PdF wants to end or change this rule. Voters should also be able to rank parties. If the first party fails, the vote goes to the next one.

The PdF wants to add the option of voting "No" on the ballot. These votes would count in the allocation of seats, but the corresponding seats would stay empty.

The PdF wants a "No" box on the ballot. Voters can use it to reject all parties. These votes should count. The seats for them in parliament stay empty.

The PdF wants to build citizens' assemblies permanently into democratic structures. They would meet regularly, be filled by lottery, and policymakers could reject their proposals only with a stated justification.

In a citizens' assembly, randomly chosen people discuss one issue. The PdF wants such assemblies to meet regularly, for example every month. Members get paid for taking part. Politicians must explain why if they reject the proposals.

The PdF wants to drop the minimum vote threshold for public party funding and lift the cap that ties it to a party's self-generated income. In its view, the current system disadvantages small and financially weak parties.

Parties get money from the state. Today they need a minimum number of votes for that. The PdF wants to end this limit. Small parties should get money too. State money should no longer depend on donations and member fees.

The PdF wants to introduce citizens' forums, regular assemblies and digital dialogue spaces in municipalities. Local votes should offer more options than just yes or no.

The PdF wants people to have more say in cities and towns. There should be citizens' forums and regular meetings. People should also be able to join in online. Votes should offer more choices than just yes or no.

The PdF wants to make it mandatory to involve citizens' parliaments in drafting important laws. A legislative footprint would disclose which interest groups influenced a law and when.

The PdF wants citizens to take part in making new laws. Citizens' parliaments should do this. They must always be heard on important laws. Each law should also show which groups influenced it.

The PdF wants to develop the right to petition into a digital platform for ideas. Petitions could be prioritized by the public, would be reviewed within a deadline, and would get a comprehensible answer if rejected.

With a petition, citizens can send a request to parliament. The PdF wants to make petitions easier. People should be able to vote on petitions online. Each petition should be reviewed within a fixed time. A rejection needs a clear explanation.

The PdF wants all meetings between politicians and lobbyists to be documented and the lobby register tightened. Stricter, uniform transparency rules should also apply at the EU level.

Lobbyists speak to politicians on behalf of companies or groups. The PdF wants all such meetings written down. A website should show this information. Rule-breakers should face tougher penalties. The EU should have stricter rules too.

The PdF wants to support youth citizens' assemblies, set up digital platforms where young people can have a say, and expand civic education in schools. The platform cites a widespread sense of political powerlessness among young people and sees it as a threat to democratic values.

Many young people think politicians do not listen to them. The PdF wants to support youth citizens' assemblies. These are groups of young people who advise politicians. Young people should also be able to have a say online. Schools should teach more about politics.

The PdF wants a clear division of tasks between the EU and member states. The EU would handle cross-border issues, while nation states would handle matters that depend on local conditions.

The PdF wants clear tasks for the EU and for the countries. The EU should handle big shared issues. These include climate protection and defense. The countries should decide their own issues, such as the retirement age.

The PdF wants to give the European Parliament its own right to initiate legislation and have the head of the Commission elected directly. According to the platform, this would increase the EU's democratic legitimacy.

The PdF wants to make the EU Parliament stronger. The Parliament should be able to propose laws itself. Citizens should elect the head of the EU Commission directly. Small parties should get better chances.

The PdF wants a single election day across the EU that is a day off work, along with less bureaucratic voting procedures. In addition, the political weight of member states would be based more on objective criteria.

The PdF wants one shared election day across the EU. People should have that day off. Everyone should get mail-in ballots automatically. Parties should be able to collect signatures digitally too.

The PdF wants to speed up ongoing EU accession processes and give candidate countries binding prospects. To keep a larger EU able to act, majority voting would apply in selected areas.

The PdF wants new countries to join the EU faster. These countries must meet rule-of-law standards. The EU should also decide by majority more often. Then a single country can no longer block decisions.

The PdF wants to stabilize the eurozone with firm debt ceilings monitored by independent experts. Countries in an economic crisis should be able to leave the euro temporarily. Cashless payments should also remain secure and anonymous.

The PdF wants to keep the euro stable. There should be firm limits on debt. Experts should check these limits, not politicians. A country in trouble should be able to leave the euro for a while. Paying without cash should stay anonymous.

The PdF wants to cut EU bureaucracy in a targeted way. New directives would be tested for practicality in advance, bureaucracy costs would be capped, and an independent body would track down inefficient rules. The party says this would strengthen the EU's ability to act and its public acceptance.

The PdF wants less red tape in the EU. New EU rules should pass a practice test first. The cost of red tape should have a limit. Companies should have less paperwork. A new body should find bad rules.

The PdF wants to make the influence of lobby groups on EU decisions more transparent and to limit it. The lobby register would be expanded, contacts logged, and independent oversight bodies created. The party justifies this with the public's trust in the EU.

Lobby groups try to influence politics. The PdF wants better checks on this in the EU. Politicians should write down their contacts with lobby groups. Everyone should be able to read this. Expert groups should also include independent experts and citizen groups.

The PdF proposes a debate on a single official language for the EU. It is meant to ease communication, cut translation costs and foster a shared identity. The platform names Esperanto as a neutral option.

The EU has many languages. The PdF wants to talk about one shared official language. This should save money on translation. The party suggests Esperanto. Esperanto is an invented language that is easy to learn.

The PdF wants to replace the unanimity rule in EU foreign policy with majority voting. The EU should also build a common defense strategy. In the party's view, this would let the EU respond to international crises faster and with one voice.

Today all countries must agree on EU foreign policy. One country can block everything. The PdF wants to change that. In the future a majority should be enough. The EU should also get a shared plan for defense.

The PdF calls for a sweeping reform of the EU institutions. It envisions a directly elected citizens' parliament, direct election of top posts, more powers for the European Parliament and an EU constitution adopted by referendum. Germany should take a leading role in carrying this out.

The PdF wants to make the EU more democratic. People should elect important EU posts directly. There should be a new citizens' parliament. The European Parliament should be able to make more laws. The EU should get its own constitution. Everyone in the EU should vote on it.

The PdF wants to keep a values-based foreign policy but give German and European interests more weight. Germany is to become more self-sufficient in key areas such as energy, armaments, and communications technology.

The PdF wants a foreign policy based on values. But German and European interests should count more. Germany should rely more on itself for energy, weapons, and communications technology. That way it depends less on authoritarian states.

The PdF wants Germany to play an active part in the United Nations and wants its structures reformed. The veto in the Security Council is to be changed, and the UN is to gain more authority in some cross-border fields.

The PdF wants to make the United Nations stronger. The short name is UN. The veto in the Security Council should change. With a veto, one country can stop a decision. The UN should also decide more, for example on climate.

The PdF sees NATO as the core of German defense. Germany is to spend two percent of its economic output on defense and play an important role in the alliance.

NATO is a defense alliance. The PdF thinks NATO is very important. Germany should spend 2 percent of its economic output on defense. Germany should also keep taking part in exercises and missions.

The PdF wants worldwide relief for natural disasters and humanitarian crises to be more closely coordinated. This is to be achieved through a UN-coordinated network, stronger local structures, and projects designed for the long term.

The PdF wants to improve help after disasters. Aid groups around the world should work together. The United Nations should lead this. Local helpers should get money and technology. The help should also work in the long run.

The PdF wants to realign development aid because it considers current policy inefficient. Partner countries are to be chosen by human rights record and need, projects are to be consolidated, and funds are to be monitored more strictly.

The PdF wants to change development aid. Partner countries should respect human rights. There should be fewer but bigger projects. A website should show all projects and spending. Outside experts should check how the money is used.

The PdF wants Germany to act as an active mediator in international conflicts. Negotiations and targeted economic sanctions are to be the main tools, with military action only as a last resort.

The PdF wants to solve conflicts mainly through talks. Germany should mediate between countries in conflict. Sanctions should help too. These are penalties in trade. The military should only be the last option.

The PdF wants to build a joint army of the European Union. It is to be defensive in nature, overseen by the European Parliament, and primarily protect the member states.

The PdF wants a joint army for the EU. The army should only defend. The European Parliament should oversee it. Countries should share technology and knowledge. That should save money.

The PdF wants to upgrade the Bundeswehr's technology, improve training, and speed up procurement. The platform justifies this with the security situation and with shortfalls in equipment, personnel, and procurement.

The PdF wants to equip the German army better. The troops should get modern technology, such as drones. Training should get better. Buying equipment should be faster.

The PdF favors military service as part of a general compulsory service and wants a public debate about it. The platform cites the Bundeswehr's personnel shortage and equipment that it considers insufficient for national and alliance defense.

The PdF likes the idea of a service duty for everyone. Service in the army would be part of it. Society should discuss this. The duty should apply to women and men alike.

The PdF wants to continue military and financial support for Ukraine at least at the current level. The platform views the war as a European war and warns that a Ukrainian defeat would have negative security consequences for Europe.

The PdF wants to keep helping Ukraine. Germany should send weapons and money, at least as much as now. Europe should manage this even without the US. The people of Ukraine should decide about peace talks themselves.

The PdF affirms the defense of Israel as a German Staatsräson (reason of state). At the same time, it considers criticism of Israeli actions justified when they contradict international norms.

The PdF stands by Israel. Germany should support Israel in defending itself. But the party also wants to be able to criticize Israel. That applies when Israel breaks international rules.

The PdF relies on military deterrence to prevent a war over Taiwan and wants to push international partners to get more involved. It justifies this with the severe consequences such a war would have for the global economy and for Germany.

The PdF wants to prevent a war over Taiwan. It relies on deterrence for this. That means: military strength should make an attack unattractive. Other countries should get more involved.

The PdF wants to support independent artists and small initiatives with dedicated programs and build cultural centers in rural areas. An independent body would decide on grants, and cultural institutions would receive stable basic state funding.

The PdF wants to give money to artists and small culture groups. Rural areas should get new culture centers. An independent board should hand out the grant money. Culture institutions should get steady money from the state.

The PdF wants to make public broadcasting more efficient, cut duplicate structures and focus its mandate on education, information and culture. The broadcasting fee would stay, while executive pay would be capped.

The PdF wants public broadcasters to be smaller and cheaper. They should focus on education, news and culture. The party wants to keep the broadcasting fee. Top managers should earn less. There should be upper limits on their pay.

The PdF wants to reduce or end the influence of political parties on appointments to broadcasting councils. Elected independent experts and civil society representatives would take their place to safeguard the broadcasters' neutrality.

Broadcasting councils oversee the public broadcasters. Today, politicians also sit on them. The PdF wants to change that. Independent experts and citizen representatives should be elected instead. This should keep the broadcasters neutral.

The PdF wants to reverse the move away from rural areas, arguing that infrastructure and basic public services there are becoming increasingly uneconomical. Its tools are tax incentives, funding programs, bonuses for rural doctors, and money for clubs and sports facilities.

Many people are moving away from the countryside. The PdF wants to change that. Families and skilled workers should get tax benefits. Doctors in rural areas should get extra pay. Clubs and sports grounds should get money too.