London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Sep 13, 2026

Germany’s Habeck admits gas levy mistake

Germany’s Habeck admits gas levy mistake

The minister’s surcharge plans prompted a backlash after it emerged profit-making companies could benefit.
Robert Habeck is trying to correct his first major misstep.

Germany’s Green vice chancellor has had a fairly good crisis so far — but his plans for a gas levy on consumers have drawn a backlash.

Last week, the government in Berlin passed the so-called gas surcharge, which will see Germans pay a few cents extra per kilowatt-hour of gas, meaning an average four-person household will pay €480 more a year.

The revenues are meant to finance a support fund for struggling energy companies to ensure the country’s supply won’t be disrupted as utilities face soaring costs for replacing Russian imports. A large chunk will go to Uniper, which recorded billions in losses.

But this week, it emerged that companies raking in record-high profits could also benefit from the surcharge.

Consumer protection groups were outraged.

"It is incomprehensible that with the gas levy [households] should support companies that are making a tidy profit,” said Federal Consumer Association chair Ramona Pop.

Habeck, Germany’s economy and climate minister, initially tried to defend his policy and asked profit-making companies to voluntarily waive any support claims. But after mounting criticism from the opposition and even within his own government, he backtracked.

At a business conference Thursday evening, Habeck said he would try to limit which companies can benefit from the revenues and acknowledged the current design of the levy presented a “political problem” that “has really ruined my day for the last 48 hours.”

The criticism, he admitted, was “correct.” He added that the current design meant companies may have a “legally justified claim. We will look at that again to see if there is a way to ward off this justified claim,” signaling potential legal problems with revising the levy at this stage.

“But,” he said, according to a transcript of the speech, “it is certainly not morally right for companies that — let me say it plainly — have earned big bucks to say: 'For the handful of revenue losses we had, we'll ask the population ... to also give us money.'”

Finance Minister Christian Lindner also said he was open to revising the measure.

For Habeck, whose popularity has soared far past Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s approval ratings, the gas levy marks his first significant blunder since taking office in December.

In previous months, he’s been busy shoring up Germany’s energy supply for the winter. That meant restarting coal plants, begging Middle Eastern autocrats for fossil fuels and taking another look at the country’s nuclear phaseout — a less-than-ideal image for a Green climate minister.

But he’s won plaudits for solid crisis management. Germany’s gas storage sites are more than 80 percent full — well ahead of schedule — a demand reduction plan has just been approved, and a major renewables bill was passed by parliament earlier this summer.

The levy’s design, however, prompted criticism even from within the coalition. Social Democrat chair Saskia Esken and Green youth wing leader Sarah-Lee Heinrich were among those who attacked the plan.

"It can’t be that society should now bear the losses while many companies have made excess profits during this crisis,” said Heinrich.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bayeux Tapestry Draws Large Crowds at British Museum
Cuts to International Aid Raise Concerns Over Fragile Overseas Health Systems
UK Airlines and Logistics Operators Adjust Capacity as Fuel Costs Rise
UK Mortgage Arrears Edge Lower in Second Quarter
UK Government Advances New Devolution Offers for English Councils
UK Parliament Begins Debate on NHS Governance and Single Patient Record Reforms
Andy Burnham Launches Number 10 North Devolution Initiative
UK Parliament Rejects Assisted Dying Bill for Terminally Ill Adults
UK Bans Goods From Israeli Settlements in the Occupied West Bank
UK Economy Grows 0.4% in July as Technology Services Strengthen
Metropolitan Police Continue Investigation Into Reform UK Political Financing
Chinese Crypto Entrepreneur Leon Li Identified as Seller of £190 Million London Mansion
Trades Union Congress Proposes Social Energy Tariff Funded by Higher Bank Surcharge
British Chambers of Commerce Calls for State Pension Triple Lock to Be Scrapped
Anthropic Says Claude Helped Disrupt Biological Weapons and Cyber Espionage Threats
UK Imposes Sanctions Over Israeli Settlements and West Bank Violence
UK Reimposes Sectoral Sanctions on Iran’s Aviation, Shipping and Energy Networks
UK Economy Grows 0.4% in July as AI and Programming Services Lift Activity
UK House of Commons Rejects Assisted Dying Bill by 286 Votes to 270
UK Reviews Nationwide Emergency Alert Tests After Systems Meet Reliability Targets
UK Seeks Faster Rail Links Across Northern Industrial Corridors
British Business Bank Allocates £150 Million for High-Growth Companies in Northern England
BBC Warns Staff Strikes Are Possible Amid Pay Dispute and £500 Million Savings Drive
UK Backs Short Extension of UN Sudan Sanctions Regime
Prime Minister Andy Burnham Defends Early Prison Release Reforms and Growth Strategy
Reform UK Faces Scrutiny Over Alleged Effort to Circumvent Foreign Donation Rules
UK Analysts Warn Tax Rises or Spending Cuts May Be Needed to Preserve Fiscal Headroom
Jaguar Land Rover Plans Up to 4,000 Job Cuts in £1.7 Billion Cost-Saving Drive
UK Chancellor Warns of Difficult October Budget as Borrowing Costs Rise
UK Declares Israeli Occupation of West Bank Unlawful and Expands Sanctions
UK House of Commons Rejects Assisted Dying Bill for England and Wales
English Councils to Gain Power to Introduce Tourist Taxes by 2028
Kemi Badenoch Reshuffles Conservative Shadow Cabinet
Firefighters Make Progress Containing Major Wildfires in South Wales
John Lewis Partnership Reports £124 Million Loss
Study Says UK AI Data Centres Will Create Only a Quarter of Forecast Jobs
UK Government Considers Higher Industrial Water Prices Amid Supply Pressures
Andy Burnham Holds First Call With Donald Trump as UK Prime Minister
NHS Records Busiest Summer on Record as Heatwaves Drive Hospital Admissions
Home Secretary Orders Police Crackdown on Far-Right Anti-Migrant Vigilantes
UK Supreme Court Rules Northern Ireland Religious Education Curriculum Breaches Human Rights Standards
Markets Price in Four Bank of England Rate Rises by Next Summer
House of Commons Prepares Free Vote on Assisted Dying Bill
UK Government Bans Trade With Israeli Settlements in Occupied Territories
UK Economy Grows 0.4% in July as Artificial Intelligence Investment Supports Expansion
Andy Burnham Becomes UK Prime Minister After Keir Starmer Resigns
John Lewis Partnership Loss Widens to £124 Million
UK Government to Put White Working-Class Social Mobility at Centre of Equality Policy
McLaren Plans £450 Million Technology Investment Creating 1,000 UK Jobs
UK Chancellor Faces Calls for Wealth Taxes and Public Ownership in Autumn Budget
×