Check: Space industry in the election program

In a comment under our YouTube video about the launch platform planned in the North Sea by the German Offshore Spaceport Alliance, we were asked if we could provide information about which party has which space program in its party program. We took this question as an opportunity to look at the party programs from this point of view.

The topic is not mentioned in the programs of the two parties "SPD" and "Freie Wähler". The extent to which they position themselves on current and expected developments therefore remains a matter of speculation. Other parties, on the other hand, sometimes have more, sometimes less concrete formulations. We present them in detail below - uncommented and taken verbatim.

FDP – Freie Demokratische Partei

Promote space travel with space law

• We "Freie Demokraten" want a groundbreaking Space Law that gives companies the necessary security for their investments in the future and allows projects and awards to be realized more quickly and flexibly.
• We need satellite data for our networked society and economy, for digital services, technologies and future projects. We want to promote the development of groundbreaking solutions by "NewSpace companies.
• We want to involve start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises in a targeted manner - both through participation in major EU projects and through the state as an anchor customer. We will also design calls for tenders that are suitable for young companies. While private-sector space travel is growing unhindered in other countries, there are many obstacles in its way in Germany. There is a lack of venture capital, a reliable legal framework and backing from the German government.

Launch platform for small launch vehicles

• We see a spaceport for small launchers in Europe as a project for the future, so that the numerous promising "New Space" companies can launch satellites flexibly and independently into space. "New Space" is a great opportunity for science, the environment, our security and economy. We want to promote its use by public institutions and research facilities by acquiring launch quotas or commissioning space services for them.

CDU – Christlich Demokratische Union Deutschlands

• Thanks to exponentially increased computing power and global networking, we are on the verge of a decade of technological breakthroughs - in medicine, nutrition, space travel or robotics.

Promoting future technology space exploration

• Space exploration is a key industry of the future - especially for the digitization of our country, there is great potential in the orbit of our planet.
• In the coming years, small satellites will play an increasingly important role in Earth observation, environmental and climate research, and all Big Data projects. We support the Copernicus program in this regard. As a committed space nation, we are relying not only on established space companies from Germany, but above all on the development of a newspace ecosystem and the strong German space industry.
• In recent years, a German industry for small launchers (rockets) has emerged. We want to develop this market for our country. This includes government nacfrage within the framework of a small satellite initiative, access to all EU and ESA launch programs, space funds within the framework of the Future Fund and open competition for next-generation European launchers.
• We will pass a space law that is startup and small business friendly.
• We will work at the international level to promote the sustainable use of space in order to ensure access to space for future generations.

CSU – Christlich Soziale Union in Bayern

We launch into space.

• Space is essential for research and networking purposes. In particular, for insights regarding climate change, space-based space observation provides indispensable knowledge. Numerous everyday innovations have been researched in orbit. For many years, Bavaria has participated to a significant extent in the development and construction of rockets as part of the European Ariane project.
• We want to go one step further and send the first micro-launcher "Made in Bavaria" into space. We are offering a prize for this and thus promoting competition. In this way, we will ignite a new location turbo for Bavaria as an aerospace location.

Bündnis 90/Die Grünen

• It is also important to maintain independent access to space, where space travel gains important insights into fundamental issues. That is why we want to strengthen the European Space Agency (ESA) and New Space and advocate for a European and new international legal framework that also regulates private actors.

AfD – Alternative für Deutschland

• In the area of private-sector aerospace, the AfD advocates competition and wants to create the framework for lead companies and a European supplier industry to remain competitive.
• We support the continuation and expansion of national and international space programs to further open up space for science, as a source of raw materials, and as a potential new habitat for humans.

Die Linke

• A NATO space center is currently being built at the NATO base in Ramstein. This is intended not only to defend satellites that have become indispensable to our everyday lives, but also to safeguard the military's ability to act and attack. The seemingly passive component of "defense in space" has an offensive background. It is intended to safeguard the military's ability to act and attack.
• DIE LINKE rejects the militarization of space. DIE LINKE also rejects the plans of other states for a military use of space. With the help of the Ramstein base, the USA has waged a drone war and thus broken international law from German territory. The consequence of this can only be to cancel the sojourn treaty or to establish its de facto breach by the USA.

Piratenpartei Deutschland

• We demand and support the free use of public cadastral, satellite or weather data that is systematically collected and analyzed by the responsible federal and state offices. These must be made available on an open data basis.