Berlin – Star writer and criminal defense lawyer Ferdinand von Schirach (61, “Crime,” “Guilt,” “Tabu”) calls for a revolution of the German political system in his ARD talk “Caren Miosga”!
Schirach wants “major constitutional reform” so his country can effectively address key issues: “pensions, the labor market, taxes.”
Schirach’s plan:
▶︎ In the future, the Federal Chancellor will be elected for a seven-year term, rather than the current four-year term.
▶︎ One Re-election should Impossible become.
▶︎ The 16 federal states also only vote every seven years – all at the same time – and kept a three-and-a-half year gap from the federal election.
▶︎ “Chancellor’s Law”: During his term, each chancellor is allowed to pass THREE laws without passing parliament. The law is only checked for legality by the Federal Constitutional Court and then implemented.
▶︎ Parliament is only allowed to repeal the “Chancellor’s Law” after three years.
In the ARD studio, Schirach received spontaneous applause from the audience for his thesis.
Former Green Party leader Ricarda Lang (31, taking part in the talks) also praised the idea of scheduling all state elections on a specific date in addition to the federal election. “This will take us out of a long-term election campaign.” Politics will again be based on the welfare of the country rather than surveys.
A prominent lawyer called Schirach’s plan “absurd.”
Constitutional expert Prof. Rupert Scholz (88, CDU) doesn’t quite understand the best-selling author’s thesis: “fantasy,” “nonsense,” says the former Berlin justice senator and former defense minister: “It’s no longer a democracy!”
Horrified by the star author’s thesis: constitutional law expert Prof. Rupert Scholz (88, CDU)
Democracy, according to Scholz, thrives on disputes, change and mutual control between the three branches of government: the legislative (parliament), the executive (the government) and the judiciary (case law).
A chancellor who served for 7 years, with his own “chancellorary act”, does not fit that description. Every chancellor dreams of being more independent from parliament – but in the spirit of the Constitution, this remains the case: the Bundestag passes laws. Nobody else!
Another interesting point: Federal states are bound to the Constitution through the “federal state” principle (Article 20) as sovereign states of a “federal republic”: they are completely free to choose WHEN they vote and for HOW MANY years. There is no need for the federal government or the Bundestag to dictate to them.
France as a role model?
In 2023, Elisabeth Borne (then head of government) and President Emmanuel Macron launched their pension reform through the French Parliament. The law sparked nationwide protests and, most importantly, strengthened politics (left and right) in the country
By the way: In France, something like Schirach’s “Chancellor’s Law” has been around for decades. There the head of government and his cabinet can pass laws without a vote in parliament and submit them in accordance with Article 49 paragraph 3 of the constitution.
Issue: Parliament can then table one or more motions of no confidence against the Prime Minister within 24 hours. Only if he wins this vote will the law be valid.
However, if he loses, he must resign. The result: new elections!
As far as we know, this doesn’t make the political situation of the current French government under Emmanuel Macron any easier…
