German conservatives float 'state-slimming' package

CSU Bundestag group leader Alexander Hoffmann has outlined a package of state-modernisation reforms framed as a 'core modernisation' of government. The proposals include halving the number of federal government commissioners (currently 45), cutting administrative staff across ministries and the Bundestag by 10%, and pursuing measures to lower electricity prices, ease working-time rules and cut red tape.

The package reflects a broader push within Germany's governing coalition to trim the size and cost of the state apparatus, a theme echoed in deregulation and 'quango cull' debates elsewhere in Europe. Whether the proposals translate into legislation will depend on negotiations within the coalition over the coming months.