"We are not many better posture than the Greeks", says with a smile sorry Uwe Mensch, Director of the Chamber of commerce and industry of Wuppertal, the head on the charts detailing the debt of the city: more than 1.8 billion EUR to some 350 000 inhabitants. To avoid to be placed under guardianship, the Mayor has presented a drastic savings plan which extends all: closure of swimming pools, schools, libraries, parking and... the dogs tax expense.
The city where Pina Bausch, specializing in automotive equipment and metallurgy, was born has certainly suffered from the crisis in 2009: some companies saw their sales slumping to 20, 30, 40. But the patterns, in the vast majority of the family business, were not massively licensed, they resorted instead to put in place by the Federal Government partial unemployment scheme. "The number of partial unemployment rose from 4.300 in December 2008 to 23.400 a year later," reports Knut Giesler, patron of the local branch of the IG Metall Union. The latest study by the Chamber of commerce shows that the air hole is passed, the orders arrive again. But financial problems, they will remain. They are the result of a formidable scissors, between volatile revenue (for example the tax professional firms), regularly amputees by the Federal State or Land, and effect always larger missions, particularly in the social support of the long-term unemployed. However Wuppertal, which is built in the 19th century on the textile industry, still displays unemployment of 12, much higher than the average national (8.1) and far superior to that of the Länder of West (6.9). The city little perform its conversion in services, particularly in the health sector or the event. It has the feeling of having less supported by the public authorities that the Ruhr neighbour. Despite its decline regular, she "continues to maintain the infrastructure built from the time when it had 450,000 inhabitants," said Rolf Volmerig, President of the Association of economic development. This is in addition annual puncture of some 20 million euros for the eastern Länder. "It comes to the ludicrous situation where Wuppertal must borrow to subsidize is a number cities have virtually no debts", said Uwe Mensch.
Debt funds
And Wuppertal is far from an isolated event in North Rhine-Westphalia. The Land may display impressive macroeconomic indicators have the same economic weight as the Netherlands, House the headquarters of nine jewels of the DAX, is proud to have converted the former federal capital Bonn UN city, claim the title of German fashion capital Düsseldorf, there still many regions in difficulty. And cities on the verge of bankruptcy. Essen opened fire all wood, this year it is capital cultural EU 2010 (in cooperation with other cities of the Ruhr 50) to permanently end its image of mining town crisis of conversion. "We are investing in the matter first of the future: culture", proclaims the Caisses d'Epargne advertising. But the town is seated, also on a huge debt of nearly $ 3 billion euros of debt. According to the association of the German, on 355 municipalities of the Land, only 35 have a balanced budget. The city of Duisburg, which was beautifully redesigned its historic river port and its famous Mills, using big names of world architecture, including Norman Foster, is one of the most indebted.
What to do to get out of the spiral of debt Lower the temperature of the pools, as in Bochum, will not suffice. April 23, two weeks before the regional elections, the Minister of Finance of the Land promised aid of several hundred million euros for the 2011 budget. But the most affected towns association, called "Raus aus den Schulden", claiming his side the establishment of a Fund of debt. At the federal level, a commission reflects a change in the sources of funding for municipalities, for example by granting them a greater share of the revenue from VAT, tax on income or on the companies. But the result of these reflections will be after the elections. A Wuppertal, also thought to help yourself. Knut Giesler, sceptic services development strategy pursued by many cities in the region, on the resources of the local industry: "look at Knipex, they make excellent, always more sophisticated tools that meet a market demand."
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