"It’s high time the federal government submitted a comprehensive and effective concept on dealing with energy price shocks affecting people," Frank Werneke told the Augsburger Allgemeine daily.
A failure to act would exacerbate deepening social divisions that have been evident for months, Werneke said. Lower-income families, in particular, have been hit disproportionately by rising food prices.
"If proposals of trade unions, civil associations, city associations or consumer groups get rejected now, this will fuel civil unrest in Germany," he warned.
The Left Party has called a mass protest against the planned gas levy in Leipzig on Monday, followed by a demonstration in Erfurt on Sunday, September 11. Werneke said the call to action was justified.