German farmers blocked highways with tractors Monday to mark the start of a week-long protest against their government’s plans to end some of their tax exemptions.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a plan last month to end farming vehicle tax exemptions and diesel tax breaks. The decision was intended to help manage a hole in the 2024 budget worth 17 billion euros ($18.6 billion), the Associated Press reported.
The German government partially backtracked Thursday as it announced a continuation of the farming vehicle tax exemption, as well as a plan to stagger the end of the diesel tax breaks over three years. However, the German Farmers’ Association demanded the plan be completely ditched and announced a week-long protest that began Monday with blocks to traffic.
Farmers used tractors to block highways and urban areas. The organized efforts forced the Volkswagen auto plant in Emden to close production because employees were unable to travel to work, German news agency dpa reported.
Jim Ferguson, a British businessman and former candidate for Parliament, said the German farmer protests represent a pushback against radical climate policies.
“The German protesters mean business as gridlock is taken to German roads and cities,” he posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Farmers and Truckers supported by heavy machinery are fighting back against the Globalists and their ridicules [sic] mandates on Net Zero and Climate Scam idiocy.”
“Polish farmers, French farmers and Dutch farmers are now coming out in support aided by Truckers,” he continued. “Will the fightback go truly international? The lying main stream media are attempting to suppress the news of this.”
After a group of farmers targeted Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck on Thursday, the protests began to draw ire, including from the farmers association, the AP reported.
In response to warnings that third parties might try to take advantage of the protests, farmers association chairman Joachim Rukwied told RBB Inforadio Monday that “we will ensure we are not infiltrated” by such players, per the AP.
As for the government partially walking back its plan to end the exemptions, Rukwied remarked: “This is absolutely insufficient. We can’t carry this additional tax burden.”
But Steffen Hebestreit, spokesman for Scholz, said this concession from the government would be the last.
“There is no consideration inside the government of changing anything else about this,” he declared.