Chancellor Merz promises a fresh start, government launches plans to reform human trafficking laws, German national team players urged against political statements at World Cup 2026 and more news on Thursday, May 28th.
Today’s top story: Merz promises to lead ‘new beginning’ for his government
Germany’s black-red federal government appears to be struggling after about a year in office. Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s approval ratings are in the basement, the AfD is ahead in polls nationwide, and the coalition is struggling to get the economy going again as it had promised to do.
Therefore, various media outlets had recently reported on thought experiments within the Union as to whether Merz could be replaced by another politician.
Stern reported that a chancellor swap was being discussed in Berlin. Bild also wrote that this possibility had been discussed among “members of the highest leadership bodies of the CDU…”
This was rejected as a “naïve idea” by the chancellor’s entourage.
For his part, Merz did not respond to the speculation about a possible change of chancellor. Instead he appeared in his hometown of Arnsberg in the Sauerland region on Wednesday evening to address the nation.
“Germany has the strength for a new beginning. And I am personally determined with all my strength to make this departure possible with my government,” he said.
“If you follow the debates in Germany today, you can get the impression that our country is completely blocked, that it can no longer change on its own and that decline is inevitable, so to speak.”
He added that, anyone who speculates about an immediate chancellor swap “is doing the business of the AfD and robbing the political centre of authority…
“It is always easier to talk about personnel than to seriously deal with income tax rates or the care reform.”
READ ALSO: How Germany’s politicians are trying to ‘AfD-proof’ the country
Germany set to reform human trafficking laws
Germany’s government has approved plans to strengthen laws against human trafficking, aiming to make prosecutions easier and penalties tougher for those exploiting vulnerable workers.
The planned reform targets perpetrators who lure others – often with false promises – into employment situations. However, the legislation also aims to hold customers who utilise the services provided by these victims accountable
Until now, this has applied only to clients paying for services provided by victims of forced prostitution. In future it could extend to sectors such as construction, slaughterhouses and nail salons.
The draft law says customers would only be liable if they knew a person was being exploited, while suspicion or assumptions about poor pay would not be enough for criminal charges.
The government argues the current legislation is too difficult to enforce, with few convictions and most cases only uncovered after victims or witnesses come forward rather than through proactive police investigations.
The reforms would also raise the maximum sentence for human trafficking to 10 years in prison and expand the definition of exploitation to include forced marriage, exploitative surrogacy and abusive adoption arrangements in line with EU rules.
German team players urged to avoid political statements at World Cup
Germany sporting director Rudi Voeller on Wednesday urged members of the World Cup squad to avoid making political statements during this summer’s tournament.
Speaking from Germany’s pre-World Cup camp in northern Bavaria, Voeller said players were not under a gag order but encouraged them to keep sport and politics “somewhat separate” while at the finals.
Germany’s head coach Julian Nagelsmann (L) and Rudi Voeller, Sporting director of the German national team (R) address a press conference in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria.(Photo by Daniel Karmann / AFP)
Voeller said there would be no specialist media training ahead of the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico, unlike in the lead-up to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
“If someone wishes to do so, they are welcome to do it in the run-up to the tournament,” Voeller said of players making political statements.
“However, if it hasn’t happened until this point, it generally shouldn’t start happening now.”
The 66-year-old hoped Germany learned from their experience four years ago in Qatar, where the team’s build-up to the tournament was dominated by discussion about a ban on political symbols.
In Qatar, the German players covered their mouths in their pre-match photo before their tournament opener against Japan and some commentators suggested it contributed to their poor showing at the tournament.
Germany face Finland in Mainz on Sunday in their final pre-tournament friendly on home soil.
Coach Julian Nagelsmann said injured veteran goalkeeper Manuel Neuer would not be back in time to play this weekend but would feature at the World Cup.
Bavaria to step up checks on rural roads
Drivers may see more police checks in the state of Bavaria from June as extra monitoring will take place on rural roads.
Throughout the month, officers will be cracking down on speeding, driving under the influence as well as risky overtaking.
A total of 31 police stations within the Upper Bavaria North Police Headquarters district are participating in the ‘Rural Road Safety’ campaign, each focusing on priorities tailored to their specific local areas.
Last year, 60 percent of traffic deaths in the area occurred on rural roads, a spokesperson for the Upper Bavaria police told local broadcaster BR24. He added that the number one cause of accidents is speeding.
READ ALSO: Driving in Germany – What are the offences that can cost you points on your licence?
Alongside inspections, police are launching an education drive. At information booths in pedestrian zones, officers will provide information on the hazards on rural roads and accident hotspots.
Residents who correctly answer questions about road safety can enter a prize draw to win a car and other prizes.
Further suspect held over Berlin Holocaust memorial attack
German police on Wednesday arrested a man suspected of encouraging a jihadist-inspired knife attack on a Spanish tourist at Berlin’s Holocaust memorial last year.
A police officer works at the scene where a person was stabbed at the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin. (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP)
A 20-year-old Syrian man named only as Wassim Al M. was jailed in March for 13 years for the attack in which he stabbed and seriously injured the tourist.
The February 2025 assault inflamed an already heated debate on immigration just a few days before a general election in Germany.
Prosecutors said another Syrian national, named as Khalaf A., had been arrested on suspicion of “aiding and abetting attempted murder and serious bodily harm”.
Khalaf A. is alleged to have spent the afternoon preceding the stabbing with Wassim Al M. and to have encouraged him to commit the attack.
The judge who presided over Wassim Al M.’s conviction in March said that he committed the crime “in the name of the Islamic State group” and had been looking to target “Israelis or people of the Jewish faith”.
The victim, who had been cut in the throat, only survived because the knife missed major blood vessels by a few millimetres.
Wassim Al M. confessed to the crime and told the court through his lawyer that he felt “shame” for his actions.
With reporting by AFP, DPA and Rachel Loxton
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: thelocal.de
