German government agrees on one-off payment for gas users

The German government has agreed on a proposed one-off payment for gas customers during a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
The so-called emergency relief measure should cover the cost of consumers' regular upfront gas payments for the month of December.
It is part of broader government efforts to cushion the impact of rising energy crisis resulting from the Western response to Russia's war on Ukraine.
Economy Minister Robert Habeck said that despite a recent fall in wholesale gas prices, future developments were uncertain.
"Private consumers and businesses are increasingly suffering from these high prices and urgently need relief," he said, welcoming Wednesday's decision as an important first step.
"Further steps will follow and we are working flat out in the federal government to implement the gas and electricity price caps," Habeck said.
The government expects the emergency relief measure to cost around €9 billion ($8.89 billion) according to a paper.
The legislative proposal will now go into parliamentary consultations, with both houses of parliament set to approve the measure by November 11.
It is intended as an interim solution until the introduction of a gas price cap for households in March.
Suppliers have made clear that it is not feasible to introduce the gas price cap earlier than March.