Speech by the Lord Mayor to the City Council on 21 September 2022 at the start of the new term of office

With today's commitment in the City Council, the process for the start of my new, fourth term of office has now come to an end. I would like to take this opportunity once again to thank all my voters, all my supporters on and off the City Council and, above all, my wife, my family and my friends. In view of its unambiguousness, the result gives me strength and a tailwind for what lies ahead.

You can all rest assured that, as in previous election periods, the well-being of the city of Radebeul will be at the centre of my actions. This should not and must not be about short-term showmanship, but about the long-term and sustainable positive development of our city. Radebeul should continue to be a city for old and young, for rich and poor, for those born here and those who have moved here. Human warmth, civic engagement, intergenerational justice, the model of the responsible citizen and respect for constitutional freedoms are the cornerstones of our actions.

I was already aware of the challenges of an increasingly difficult overall social environment when I set my election slogan "Education, Economy, Opportunities & Justice". Examples include the demographic challenge, which I have been reminding people of for several years now, and the ever-increasing debt of society as a whole. It is downright absurd that almost all social security systems in Germany are at their limits, not at the end but at the beginning of an economic crisis.

However, since the spring, the general conditions and the economic environment have continued to deteriorate significantly. Be it the consequences of the Russian war of aggression, the dramatic energy crisis, the supply chains that continue to stutter or the ever-increasing inflation, which is now being compounded by rapidly rising interest rates.

This makes it all the more important that we in Radebeul stand together, democratically and in diversity of opinion, respect and tolerance, to find the best way forward for our city. Every day and again and again, we must "build bridges instead of deepening rifts". With a sound budgetary policy and an active citizenry, we have laid and promoted important foundations. These offer us a real chance of weathering the storms. It is therefore primarily up to us, not least here in the City Council.

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However, the current actions at federal level are not very favourable.

We are in the midst of a dramatic energy crisis and even before that, as I repeatedly pointed out in my budget speeches, we had by far the highest energy prices in Europe. An immense burden for citizens and companies, an immense risk for Germany as an industrial centre. Instead of doing everything possible in such an extraordinary situation to keep the energy supply as broad as possible and to curb all additional political price drivers, the opposite is unfortunately happening. At the end of the year, a further 7 per cent of the electricity supply will be taken off the market with the shutdown of the last three nuclear power plants, and only two of the planned 10 or so coal-fired power plants from the grid reserve are back in operation because the federal government only wants to allow their operation until April, which makes restarting them uneconomical for the operators. As a result, the transmission grid is becoming increasingly unstable. As a result, an increase in the transmission grid fee from 3 to 9 cent/KWh will probably be unavoidable in October. In addition, the Federal Network Agency is currently holding a hearing with the grid operators with the aim of shortening the amortisation period for gas grids from the current 40 to 60 years to around 22 years, as the aim is to phase out gas by 2045. This would result in further increases in network charges. Some of the current shortages and price spikes are therefore home-made.

Instead of countering the energy crisis with market mechanisms and thus tackling the root cause, the focus is largely one-sidedly on combating the consequences. This requires ever greater use of tax revenue. Sooner or later, this will certainly lead to a renewed suspension of the debt brake and thus to further money printing at the expense of future generations. As a result, inflation will not be curbed, but further fuelled.

And in all of this, aren't we often moving through the world in a rather hypocritical manner? Nuclear power is being shut down in Germany as a high-risk technology, but at the same time we are buying nuclear power from other countries. Fracking is being rejected in Germany, but at the same time LNG fracking gas is being imported on a massive scale. In Germany, there is only a debate about whether coal mining will end in 2030 or 2038, but at the same time coal is being imported on a massive scale from Colombia, for example, against the resistance of the indigenous people there. Why do we expect others to do something to fulfil our needs that we ourselves are not prepared to give? Wouldn't it be a shared European responsibility that everyone is first and foremost responsible for securing their own basic needs?

What is particularly annoying, however, is the public background music. When high-ranking politicians give the advice in such a stressful situation, which is almost desperate for many, that it is better to reach for the flannel than the shower, or when it is fabulated that if a bakery closes for a few weeks, then that is not insolvency, then this is not only insensitive, it is also simply a top-down attitude towards the masses of "normal people".

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We can hardly influence this from Radebeul, but we should be open and honest about it. People and companies expect this from us. They expect us to understand and support them in their fears and uncertainties about the future and the challenges they face.

It is therefore all the more important now not to wait for help from the federal and state governments first, to demand it loudly - as important and right as this is - but first of all to fulfil local self-government - SELF-government - with life.

We in Radebeul must stand together, we must first of all see what we can achieve and take responsibility for in order to preserve our town, our municipal and civic structures, our voluntary and entrepreneurial structures. We need to get under the hooks. Ultimately, the image of the mother hen - symbolising Radebeul as a whole - which protects its young - we are all one of these young - from harm, must be brought to life in a positive sense.

This gives the election motto of justice a highly topical dimension. Normal earners, employees and small and medium-sized enterprises alike, must take centre stage. Without them, without maintaining their strength and performance, it will also be difficult for the weak and for us as a city in the future.

Despite the clouding of the general conditions, what should we focus on from now on when shaping the future?

On the one hand, there is our recognised good educational infrastructure. We must succeed in continuing to implement the school centre concept. In addition to the completion of the renovation of the time-honoured Luisenstift, the new construction of the Kötzschenbroda secondary school and the after-school care centre at Oberlößnitz primary school are the top priorities.

In the area of business-related infrastructure, the focus will be on continuing the construction of the Nach der Schiffsmühle route, the further expansion of Meißner Straße including Line 4 and the creation of an attractive and efficient connection between the Fabrikstraße business location and Cossebauder Straße. Last but not least, this creates further opportunities to offer Radebeul companies expansion or location alternatives in the urban area and also to attract new companies.

Yes, and now that the new turntable ladder has been ceremonially handed over, it is also time to finally start building the new equipment centre in the east for our volunteer fire brigade. This would make its basic structure future-proof.

Especially in the current situation, the balancing act between the budgetary challenges on the one hand and the preservation and stabilisation of the city's basic structures on the other is particularly demanding. Nevertheless, we should not deviate from the tried and tested path of the ban on new borrowing laid down in our main statutes.

Throughout history, it has always been supposed doctrines of salvation that have pretended to know what the future holds. The results have always been disastrous. We should recognise that none of us can predict the future, let alone reliably know the specific steps to get there. We should therefore be cautious about using the phrase "investing in the future" as a licence for new debt. If our decision today turns out to be wrong tomorrow, the next generation will have to shoulder a double burden: they will have to cope with our investment decision and they will also have to pay for it. In my eyes, this is and remains irresponsible.

So let us take up the challenge together for the good of our city - especially because the time ahead of us will not be an easy one. Let us unite and put aside what divides us.

Yes, and let us consistently oppose the tendencies of marginalisation, suppression and obstruction of seemingly "wrong" views, which are unfortunately also noticeable here. A liberal democracy lives and draws strength from the diversity of opinions. They have a right to be expressed and heard as long as they do not leave the constitutional framework. Thoughts, words and culture are free. Let us stand up for this openly and clearly.

Only by "building bridges instead of deepening rifts" will we master the challenges. I am firmly convinced of this. Just as I am firmly convinced that the majority of people in Radebeul will follow this path with conviction and vigour.

Let's tackle it - together!

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