Left Party Considers Constitutional Challenge Against New Basic Income Support

Dispute over sanctions and constitution

The Left Party considers the reform substantively wrong. "Of the previous Bürgergeld recipients, the vast majority are single parents and the mentally ill, who need support rather than sanctions in order to re-enter the labor market," Schwerdtner said. She accused the government of targeting the wrong people with harsh sanctions.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz promoted the law on the platform X. "Arbeit habe nun Vorrang," he wrote. It was a matter of social justice. "Wir haben klare Regeln gegen Leistungsmissbrauch geschaffen. Wer in Not ist, dem wird geholfen. Daran ändert sich nichts," the Chancellor further declared.

Merz campaigns for reform

Schwerdtner also put forward her own figures in the debate. "Only 0.3 percent of recipients are total refusers," she said with regard to recipients of the previous Bürgergeld. The large majority of recipients depend on support, not pressure.

The Left Party chairwoman also criticized a different group: "Es gebe in Deutschland 800.000 Menschen, die allein von ihrem privaten Vermögen oder von Mieteinnahmen leben könnten. Das sind die echten Sozialschmarotzer in diesem Land," Schwerdtner said. "Aber nicht jemand, der psychisch krank zu Hause sitzt und sich deswegen nicht ins Jobcenter traut."

Demand for better resourcing of job centers

The Left Party is also calling for better resourcing of the authorities. "Auch die Linke wolle, dass Menschen schneller in Arbeit kämen," Schwerdtner said. "Dafür müssen die Jobcenter besser ausgestattet sein." She also called for better job placement and more language courses for recipients.

Schwerdtner left open how a possible constitutional complaint would be structured in concrete terms. A date for a decision by the Left Party on further action was also not initially given. The federal government expects, according to its own statements, that the law will noticeably increase the incentive to take up work.

The facts in this report come from the dpa news channel. The article was broadcast on July 1, 2026, on Deutschlandfunk.