Mayor Peter Tschentscher (SPD) criticized the Hamburg CDU’s plans to cancel the referendum on tightening climate targets among citizens. The CDU announced on Tuesday that it would put an amendment to the vote at a citizens’ meeting in December that would change the climate neutrality goal from 2040 to 2045.
Tschentscher rejects this. “You can’t face a referendum like that,” the SPD politician told broadcaster RTL Nord. In an interview to be broadcast on Wednesday evening (6 p.m.), Tschentscher said that the results of the vote on October 12 “must now be accepted. That is the meaning of this popular decision.”
The mayor said that the first thing to do now was to find a way that climate neutrality – as determined by the referendum – could be achieved five years earlier. “If we can’t find it, we can also consider changing the climate protection law,” he said. “But not now – as soon as we vote.”
Tschentscher emphasized that the referendum also stipulates that measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions must be designed in a “socially acceptable” way. “That means no job losses, but the city remains economically strong and makes climate protection a top priority.”
In a referendum on October 12, a majority of Hamburg residents voted for more ambitious climate targets. 53.2 percent of voters chose to advance the city’s climate neutrality from 2045 to 2040. Starting in 2026, the maximum amount of annual CO₂ emissions must be adhered to and checked. If this path of reduction is missed, immediate action will be required starting in 2027. Voter turnout reached 43.7 percent, and the constitutional approval quorum has been significantly exceeded.
The referendum was triggered by the “Hamburger Zukunftsenscheid” initiative, an alliance of associations such as Fridays for Future, NABU, Verdi and tenants’ associations. One month after the successful referendum, stricter climate protection laws, pushing for climate neutrality until 2040, came into effect in mid-November.
CDU parliamentary group and state chairman Dennis Thering justified his party’s move to scrap the law with “huge uncertainty” in the city. Citizens expressed concerns about the rising cost of living, companies leaving the country, and a lack of skilled workers. From the CDU’s perspective, an additional five years until the city becomes climate neutral is necessary to mitigate social hardship and economic risks. By 2040, the climate change pathway can only be achieved through undue effort,
Legally, the CDU relies on Article 50 Paragraph 4 of the Hamburg Constitution. Therefore, citizens can overturn laws passed by referendum with a simple majority if their consequences are deemed unacceptable. The CDU does not have a majority of its own: it has 26 seats but needs 61 votes.
Therering was counting on support from the SPD, which was also critical of the referendum before the vote. According to Mayor Peter Tschentscher, such support would be nearly impossible. If citizens still approve the request, a three-month period would begin during which some 33,000 eligible voters could force a new referendum on the CDU law.
