Will Germany form a new Digital Ministry?
The issue of forming a separate Digital Ministry has been on German government agenda since 2017 but related debates have intensified over the last month. The ruling Grand Coalition of the Christian Democrats and the Social Democrats disagrees on governing the cross-cutting issue of digitalisation. The conservative Union wants to form a new Digital Ministry for more prominence of the digital and to serve as a coordinating function among other ministries. The proponents argue that the current system leads to ‘confused competences, untapped synergies and people working past each other.’ A strong central structure, a ‘service point’, with its own budgets would care for the implementation of the digital agenda, analysis, pilot projects and recommendations across the whole government. The social democrats oppose the proposal, claiming that the current institutions are already dealing with the digital issues but are in need of more funding for better coordination. Other voices are calling this debate a ‘phantom’ one, without real intention for restructuring.