Germany is heading for new elections in February 2025 after Olaf Scholz’s three-party coalition collapsed.At the same time, the country is in a period of severe economic stagnation.
The government crisis was triggered when Olaf Scholz, leader of the Social Democrats (SPD), fired Finance Minister Christian Lindner from the liberal FDP party. The incident led to the collapse of the three-party coalition that also included the Greens. After Scholz lost a vote of confidence in the Bundestag, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier announced that new elections would be held on February 23, 2025.
The latest opinion polls show that the conservative CDU/CSU bloc is leading with 32% of voter support. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) is at 20%, while the SPD, Olaf Scholz’s party, only reaches 15%. The Greens and FDP reach 14% and 7% respectively.
Despite the AfD’s strong rise in the polls, the established parties have made it clear that they will not form a coalition with the party.
Economic challenges
At the same time as political uncertainty is growing, Germany is facing major economic problems. The country’s economy has stagnated and the central bank has recently revised its forecasts downwards. For 2023, the economy is expected to shrink by 0.2%, and only modest growth of 0.2% is predicted for 2025.
Germany, the EU’s largest economy, has been hit hard by factors such as high energy costs and increased global competition. Export-dependent sectors such as the automotive industry are struggling with structural challenges, and the country’s economic growth is now significantly lower than before the pandemic.
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Montage. Photo: Michael Lucan/CC BY-SA 3.0, Srdjanns74/iStock
In Germany's increasingly deteriorating welfare climate, Chancellor Merz is now signaling a dramatic increase in the country's retirement age - while money continues to flow to Ukraine.
While Berlin sends billions to Ukraine and turns a blind eye to migration costs in Germany, voices are being raised for Germans to work longer to save the welfare system. German Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) is preparing the country’s residents for a longer working life.
According to a new proposal, the retirement age in Germany could gradually be raised to 73 years as part of the government’s attempt to save an increasingly strained welfare system. Critics warn that the ideas about retirement age 73 lack both realism and fairness.
Friedrich Merz has stated that Germans must get used to the idea of less leisure time and longer working lives to finance pensions, healthcare and elderly care.
Meanwhile, economic analyses show that the country’s former strength as the EU’s economic engine has turned into stagnation. The deficit in public insurance systems is growing rapidly and several German states report shortages of both personnel and funding in healthcare.
The government’s expert council now warns that demographic developments require decisive action – more workers, higher fees and later retirement.
Germany has proposed raising the retirement age to 73 to prevent the collapse of the pension system, per Reuters
But while Germans are urged to work until well after 70 years of age, Berlin continues to send billions to Ukraine. According to German media, the military and humanitarian support amounts to well above 40 billion euros since 2022.
Critics argue that the current government simultaneously fails to address the homeland’s own financial problems. The growing national debt, rising energy prices and weak industrial production have put welfare under severe pressure – but aid to Kiev remains unchanged.
Many Germans therefore wonder how the country can afford to finance the war abroad but not its own pensions.
Tens of billions of euros in German taxpayer money go to Ukraine every year. Montage. Photo: U.S. Marine Corps/Sgt. Samuel Fletcher, President Of Ukraine
Immigration’s impact
The official explanation for the crisis is an aging population. But several economists argue that the problem rather lies in the extensive immigration over the past two decades.
According to calculations by pension researcher Bernd Raffelhüschen, many newcomers contribute less to the social system than they receive back, especially during their first years in the country.
In an interview with German tabloid Bild from October 2024, he said that immigration will not save either the economy or welfare – rather the opposite.
Other experts also argue that integration problems and low employment among certain immigrant groups have become a long-term structural concern for the German economy. Despite this, the issue receives limited space in political debate.
Montage. Photo: Amisom, Pexels
The chancellor’s dilemma
The Federal Chancellor thus faces a double dilemma. On one hand, the finance ministry demands reforms to avoid collapse in the welfare system. On the other hand, new cuts and raised retirement age risk increasing discontent among voters who already feel that burdens are distributed unfairly.
The opposition, particularly Alternative for Germany (AfD), has quickly exploited the situation and describes the proposal as a betrayal of the country’s workers. Meanwhile, Merz tries to maintain a hard line against criticism and present the reform as a necessity.
But more and more Germans are now asking the question: why should citizens work longer, while billions continue to flow to both Ukraine and a costly migration system that few still believe will pay for itself?
Pension system: The statutory retirement age in Germany is currently 67 years, but proposals exist to gradually raise it to 73.
Economy: Germany's GDP growth has fallen to below 0.5 percent during 2024–2025, resulting in high inflation and reduced industrial production.
Support to Ukraine: Since 2022, Germany has allocated over 40 billion euros in military, economic and humanitarian aid – the second largest contribution within the EU after the USA.
Migration: Around 17 million people in Germany have foreign backgrounds. Integration and social expenditures are estimated to cost the state over 30 billion euros annually.
On Wednesday, the European Parliament voted through a proposal to ban meat-related names on vegetarian and vegan products. This means that “soy sausage” and “veggie burgers” may soon be called something entirely different.
The debate over whether vegetarian and vegan products should be allowed to be called, for example, “veggie burgers” or “vegan sausages” has existed for a long time. Already in 2020, the European Parliament voted on the issue, which ended in a no.
The proposal was put back on the table, where the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development in the European Parliament proposed that a series of terms, such as sausage, burger, schnitzel and steak, should not be allowed to be used on vegetarian products. The main reason put forward is that they want to protect European farmers and food production.
During the week, the European Parliament approved the proposal for such a ban, reports Göteborgs-Posten (a Swedish newspaper). The proposal was voted through with 355 votes in favor and 247 against.
“A bit silly”
All Swedish MEPs voted no to a ban, except for the Sweden Democrats (SD) who chose to abstain from voting – but instead came with their own proposal that meant only chicken products may be called chicken, and only meat products may be called meat. However, it was voted down. Dick Erixon (SD), a Swedish MEP, believes the whole issue is “a bit silly”.
— We think this is all a bit silly. Lowering food prices and deregulating so that we get lower food prices is a more important issue to discuss. This is too harsh. Products should be called what they are. If you have meat, then it’s obviously meat, but if you make it from soybeans, then you must be able to call it soy sausage, he says.
The new addition means that new names such as “vegan patty” and “plant-based roll” could become reality in stores, but this will only be clear after the 27 EU countries have negotiated on the matter.
Iris Stalzer is now pointing to her 17-year-old adopted daughter as the suspect in the brutal knife attack in Stalzer’s home, according to fresh information. Police say the investigation’s focus remains on some form of family conflict and not political violence.
In the city of Herdecke in western Germany, the investigation continues after newly elected mayor Iris Stalzer (SPD) was stabbed severely in her home earlier this week.
Police and Stalzer are now pointing to her 17-year-old adopted daughter as the main suspect in the attack, reports Die Welt.
Stalzer was severely injured and received 13 stab wounds, including to her torso and lungs. After the attack, she managed to reach safety in the house where she was later found and received immediate medical care.
She is still being treated in hospital but according to reports, her condition has stabilized and she is no longer in life-threatening condition.
Iris Stalzer (SPD). Photo: Iris Stalzer/FB
Police found several suspected knives in the children’s room. They also discovered bloodstains on clothing believed to belong to the adopted daughter as well as traces of blood cleaning in the residence.
The 15-year-old adopted son remains under police investigation but is not being identified as the main suspect.
In the year before the attack, several incidents of family violence have been reported and police have been called to the family’s residence on repeated occasions.
Police now rule out a political motive behind the knife attack and see family conflicts as the main lead in the investigation.
The investigation continues intensively and the murder investigation unit in Hagen is leading the work to secure evidence and clarify motives.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz quickly condemned the attack and expressed hope for Stalzer’s swift recovery.
During the year, incidents of domestic violence have been reported in Stalzer's home, and police have previously been called to the residence due to violent incidents.
Iris Stalzer (SPD), newly elected mayor of the city of Herdecke in western Germany, was found yesterday in her home with life-threatening stab wounds. Police currently rule out a political motive and instead suspect the incident is connected to her family.
In Herdecke, a smaller city in the North Rhine-Westphalia region of western Germany, 57-year-old Iris Stalzer was found with multiple life-threatening stab wounds in her apartment on Tuesday.
According to information from her adoptive son, she was attacked outdoors by several men, but despite the severe injuries managed to retreat to her home. Politicians from across Germany quickly condemned the attack and expressed concern for Iris Stalzer’s health.
Police have launched a major investigation and currently rule out that the attack had a political motive, instead suspecting that the perpetrator is actually within her own family circle.
Stalzer’s two adoptive children, a 15-year-old son and a 17-year-old daughter, have been brought in for questioning and further investigation. Recent reports indicate that it is the 15-year-old adoptive son who has been arrested as the suspect for the attempted murder.
BREAKING:
Iris Stalzer, the Mayor of Herdecke in Germany, was stabbed 13 times in the abdomen and back today.
Her 15-year-old adoptive son is now being held by the police as the primary suspect in the case pic.twitter.com/XieNNdr0CY
During the year, incidents of domestic violence have been reported at Stalzer’s home, and police have previously been called to the residence due to violent incidents.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called the act a “despicable attack” and expressed hope for Stalzer’s swift recovery. He has also directed his thoughts to her family and relatives.
Stalzer belongs to the Social Democrats (SPD) and she won the mayoral election with 52.2 percent of the votes, breaking the Christian Democrats’ long rule in Herdecke. The small city of around 23,000 inhabitants has now gathered in concern over the serious attack.
This is far from the first time German politicians have been victims of violence. Historically, similar serious attacks have shaken the country and contributed to a growing debate about the safety of public representatives.
The investigation continues with forensic analyses and the murder investigation unit in the nearby city of Hagen has reportedly taken over the investigation.
