Farmer protests continue in Berlin over fuel subsidy cuts

Protesting farmers continued to drive tractors around Berlin's government district on Tuesday, a day after mass demonstrations against proposals to cut agricultural diesel fuel subsidies, reported dpa.

About 330 tractors and other farm vehicles stood along the boulevard leading toward Berlin's iconic Brandenburg Gate on Tuesday morning, according to local police.

But police said there was a constant stream of departures and new arrivals.

Two further demonstrations were announced on Tuesday, including one by a farmers' association for the surrounding German state of Brandenburg. Further convoys of tractors joined them in the course of the morning.

In addition, a vigil by the Free Farmers' Association had been running since the previous night.

On Monday morning, several thousand tractors, and many more protesters, descended on central Berlin to demonstrate against the fuel subsidy cuts proposed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition government.

The proposal came amid efforts by Scholz's government to close a major budget gap. The government has so far softened the proposal, offering to gradually phase out the subsidy over three year, but agricultural leaders have demanded further concessions.

The centre-right CDU/CSU opposition bloc, which has largely backed the farmers in their protest against the government, called on Tuesday for wide-ranging financial and regulatory relief for the agricultural sector.

The CDU/CSU has proposed making the diesel fuel subsidy permanent, extending permits for livestock barns and creating a new animal welfare fee on products in supermarkets to offset the cost of implementing new welfare and environmental regulations.

"There finally needs to be an awareness that every regulation, every rule and every requirement is associated with harsh consequences for the daily work of our farmers," the CDU's Steffen Bilger told dpa.