German Constitutional Court delays approval of controversial heating bill

Germany’s Constitutional Court late on Wednesday postponed approval of the controversial heating bill. The DPA news agency reported that the court ruled the Bundestag could not pass the bill this week. It thus granted the opposition’s request for an interim injunction. The second and third readings had originally been scheduled for Friday.

The Constitutional Court justified its decision by citing doubts over whether lawmakers’ rights had been adequately respected during the bill’s consideration. According to DPA, the court’s decision is a political setback for the coalition government of the Social Democrats (SPD), Free Democrats (FDP) and the Greens.

Christian Democratic Union (CDU) MP Thomas Heilmann petitioned the Constitutional Court, arguing that the Bundestag could not hold a final reading of the bill unless lawmakers had received the draft in writing at least 14 days beforehand, which did not happen in this case.

It is not yet clear when the final vote on the bill will take place. One option is to convene a special session of the Bundestag, or to hold the vote in September after lawmakers’ summer recess.

The bill stipulates that, from 2024, every newly installed heating system must be powered by at least 65% renewable energy. The first reading in parliament in June was already marked by considerable disagreement.