Germany: Right-Wing NPD Posts Semi-Secret File on Itself
Germany’s right-wing extremist NPD has published a confidential brief regarding a potential ban of the party that was compiled by government agencies
Tag: federal constitution
Germany and the European Crisis: Confusion and Delay
Yesterday, the BBC’s man in Berlin discovered that there are constitutional limits to Merkel’s ability to somehow save the Euro. Following a constitutional amendment in the 1990s, article 23 of the Basic Law stipulates that any further transfers of sovereignty to the EU require absolute two-thirds majorities in both the Bundestag and the Federal Council…
Why the EU commission takes Germany to court
You may or may not be aware that the EU commission has announced yesterday that it will take Germany to court over the country’s failure to transpose the data retention directive into national law. What makes the recent case unusual is its domestic background
Snap Election in North Rhine-Westphalia
Much to everybody’s surprise, the minority government in North Rhine-Westphalia collapsed today. Minority governments are a rarity in Germany. The federal constitution, reflecting Germany’s inter-war experience of unstable governments and intense political strife, practically rules them out. Constitutional details at the state level differ but the general assumption is that the government needs the reliable…