Bild: Interest rates down: What this means for our money in 2025 | Zinsen runter: Was das für unser Geld 2025 heißt
FAZ: Voigt elected prime minister with votes from the left | Voigt mit Stimmen der Linken zum Ministerpräsidenten gewählt
Funke: Senate presents first heating plan | Senat legt erste Wärmeplanung vor
Handelsblatt: The gold conundrum | Das Gold-Rätsel
RND: Three people and their hopes: „My heart always believed in Syria“ | Drei Menschen und ihre Hoffnungen: „Mein Herz hat immer an Syrien geglaubt“
SZ: Political premiere in Thuringia | Politpremiere in Thüringen
Tagesspiegel: Experts warn: Clinics „not prepared“ for wars and disasters | Experten warnen: Kliniken auf Kriege und Katastrophen „nicht vorbereitet“
taz: As true to me as the SPD, Sahra Wagenknecht and, in God’s name, the Left Party | So wahr mir die SPD, Sahra Wagenknecht und in Gottes Namen auch noch die Linke helfe
Welt: EU disputes deportation of refugees to Syria | EU streitet über Abschiebung von Flüchtlingen nach Syrien
Situation in Syria stabilizes: Hostilities have broken out in areas in the north near Manbij and in the east of the country, the UN emergency aid office Ocha reported. There are still reports of victims of explosive remnants of war. While clean-up operations are underway in the capital Damascus and many businesses and public services are resuming operations, the situation in the northeast is still unclear. There, the provision of humanitarian aid continues to be difficult. nau.ch
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to keep the military in the Syrian buffer zone for the time being: the soldiers are to remain there until a new Syrian leadership can guarantee security. After the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Israeli troops advanced into the buffer zone, which had been established after the 1973 Middle East War. Netanyahu’s office said the overthrow of al-Assad by jihadists had created a vacuum on the other side of the border. handelsblatt.com
SWR-Baden-Württemberg-Trend by Infratest-Dimap: Union 33 percent (-1), SPD 13 percent, Greens 22 percent (+4), FDP 4 percent (-1), AfD 15 percent (-1), BSW 4 percent (-1), others 9 percent (compared to October). swr.de
NRW check of the NRW newspapers by Forsa: Union 41 percent, SPD 16 percent, Greens 14 percent, FDP 3 percent, AfD 13 percent, Left 2 percent, BSW 3 percent. rundschau-online.de
EU foreign ministers discuss „ironclad security guarantees“ for Ukraine: If a ceasefire is negotiated after US President-elect Donald Trump takes office, to give Ukraine iron-clad security guarantees, according to the so-called Berlin Declaration, which was agreed by Germany, France, Poland, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. The meeting was initiated by German Foreign Minister Baerbock. The foreign ministers of several European states expressed their support for Ukraine’s NATO membership at the meeting. They would continue to support Ukraine on its irreversible path to full Euro-Atlantic integration, including NATO membership. n-tv.de
Labor Minister Hubertus Heil wants to extend the period for claiming short-time work compensation to 24 months: In doing so, he wants to curb a further increase in unemployment. According to a new draft law, without the extension of the period for claiming compensation, it is likely that companies would lay off many employees currently working reduced hours. The red-green minority government can pass the decree without consulting the Bundestag or Bundesrat. According to government sources, the cabinet is expected to approve it before Christmas. handelsblatt.com, n-tv.de
Broadcast license fee to remain stable for 2025 and 2026 according to the federal states: The KEF finance commission had recommended that the federal states raise the fee by 58 cents a month in January. ARD and ZDF had filed a constitutional complaint in Karlsruhe in November because no decision had been taken by the federal states despite the KEF recommendation. The minister presidents also decided on changes to the model for setting the license fee in general. The so-called opt-out solution stipulates that an increase will no longer require the approval of all 16 state parliaments. Instead, depending on the amount of the future fee, a certain number of states must actively object to stop the increase for the time being. Bavaria and Saxony-Anhalt stated in a protocol note that they would only sign the new draft state treaty if ARD and ZDF withdraw their constitutional complaint.
More Politics:
- Compromise on Digitalpakt 2.0: Union accuses Education Minister Cem Özdemir of insufficient funding. rnd.de
- Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil calls for protection of the constitutional court before the election. zeit.de
- Approved arms exports to Turkey at highest level since 2006.
- Report on drugs and drug addiction: cocaine use on the rise in Germany. tagesschau.de
- Constitutional Court rules that tobacco tax on e-cigarettes can remain in place. tagesschau.de
- Number of road deaths in 2024 will probably remain almost unchanged. spiegel.de
CDU politician Mario Voigt is the new prime minister of Thuringia: Voigt received 51 of 88 votes in the first round of voting in the state parliament in Erfurt, thereby achieving the required absolute majority. 33 members of parliament voted against the CDU politician, with four abstentions. The alliance of CDU, BSW and SPD only has 44 seats in the state parliament and therefore does not have a majority of its own. Before the session, Christian Schaft, the parliamentary leader of the Left Party, had announced that Voigt would be supported in the secret ballot. This was preceded by an agreement on regular consultations with the new coalition, while at the same time no cooperation is to take place with the AfD. derstandard.de, zdf.de, faz.net
More Regional:
- Brandenburg: Björn Lüttmann elected leader of the SPD state parliamentary group. n-tv.de
- Bavaria: Follow-up investigations in the proceedings against AfD politician David Halemba, among other things for sedition and money laundering. rnd.de
- Schleswig-Holstein: Parliament passes amendments to the funeral law. n-tv.de
- Hessen: AfD candidate Markus Fuchs fails in bid for vice-presidency in state parliament. fr.de
- Hessen: Apartments should not be allowed to stand empty for more than six months. hessenschau.de
- Lower Saxony: Association of Towns and Cities calls for test trial of bodycams for firefighters, emergency services and police. n-tv.de
- Hessen: Police allowed to use AI in video surveillance. hessenschau.de
- Bavaria: Falsely imprisoned Manfred Genditzki asked to pay 100,000 euros for time in custody. n-tv.de
- North Rhine-Westphalia: All the police officers charged with the fatal shooting of a Senegalese man in Dortmund have been acquitted. faz.net
- Berlin: Austerity budget destroys years of scientific funding. jmwiarda.de
- Schleswig-Holstein: Sweden’s former prime minister Stefan Löfven gives Willy Brandt speech. ndr.de
- Schleswig-Holstein: FSG and Nobiskrug shipyards file for bankruptcy. shz.de
French President Emmanuel Macron will appoint a new head of government on Friday morning. Originally, Macron had set himself a deadline of Thursday during talks with representatives of several parties. The new head of government will face the task of putting together a government that will not be brought down again at the next opportunity by a vote of no confidence. The previous Prime Minister, Michel Barnier, was only able to stay in office for three months. tagesspiegel.de, spiegel.de, faz.net
Protests in Georgia enter third week: Demonstrations took place in several cities on Thursday evening. In Tbilisi, thousands of people gathered again in front of parliament to demonstrate against the pro-Russian government of Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze. On Saturday, his party „Georgian Dream“ plans to use its majority in parliament to elect the ultra-right-wing politician Mikheil Kavelasvhili as the new president. He is to succeed the pro-Western head of state Salome Zourabichvili, who refuses to step down. She calls the new parliament unconstitutional due to suspected election fraud. de.euronews.com, derstandard.at
Romania and Bulgaria can fully join the Schengen Area, the 27 EU member states have unanimously decided, as announced by the Hungarian EU Council presidency in Brussels. Since March, controls at the sea borders have been lifted, and now free travel without checks at the land borders should also be possible. A total of 29 countries belong to the Schengen Area, including EU member states such as Germany and France, but also non-EU countries such as Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. Romania and Bulgaria have been EU members since 2007. n-tv.de
European Central Bank lowers eurozone interest rates again: As the central bank announced after a council meeting in Frankfurt am Main, the deposit rate will be reduced by 0.25 percentage points to 3.0 percent. This marks the fourth reduction this year. The interest rate at which commercial banks can borrow fresh funds from the ECB will also be cut again, from 3.4 percent to 3.15 percent. handelsblatt.com, zdf.de, tagesschau.de
Tens of thousands of Boko Haram members in Nigeria have surrendered: More than 30,000 fighters have laid down their weapons, the defense ministry said; almost 37,000 women and over 62,000 children have also surrendered. This is largely due to military operations as well as dialogue and rehabilitation measures. Many former members of the terrorist group claim to have surrendered due to hunger and poor living conditions. Boko Haram is fighting for an Islamic state and has carried out attacks in Nigeria and in the neighboring countries of Chad and Cameroon. derstandard.at
Zimbabwe wants to abolish the death penalty: After the decision of the parliament, the signature of President Emmerson Mnangagwa is still missing. He has been critical of the death penalty in the past and advocated its abolition. The death penalty was last carried out in 2005 during the reign of the late President Robert Mugabe. Nevertheless, death sentences have been repeatedly handed down by Zimbabwean courts. In April this year, Mnangagwa issued an amnesty and commuted all death sentences to life imprisonment. swissinfo.ch
US President Joe Biden pardons 39 offenders and commutes the prison sentences of 1,500 convicts: according to the White House, this is the largest amnesty by a US president in just one day in US history. A large proportion of those whose sentences were shortened had been under house arrest since the coronavirus pandemic. The 39 pardoned individuals had been convicted of non-violent crimes, such as drug possession. Biden wants to help reunite families, strengthen communities and reintegrate individuals into society. It is common for presidents in the US to pardon offenders shortly before the end of their term in office. rnd.de, zdf.de, tagesschau.de
Trump supporter Kari Lake to head US international broadcaster Voice of America: The 55-year-old journalist still has to be formally appointed by the future leadership of the relevant broadcasting authority, USAGM. US President-elect Donald Trump also wants to reshape the leadership here. Lake worked for a local television station in Arizona for many years. She later switched to politics and spread conspiracy theories about voter fraud in the 2020 elections. taz.de, zeit.de
More News:
- EU: EU Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius warns: „We are not sufficiently prepared for an attack“. rnd.de
- EU: European Council agrees: New EU rules for collecting flight passenger data are in place. heise.de
- EU: Experts slam EU’s data protection plans as „not possible“. welt.de
- EU: Lucrative second jobs: MEPs earn more than six million euros on the side. spiegel.de
- Poland: Finance minister wants to push for joint EU funding for defense. polskieradio.pl
- Moldova: Parliament has decided to declare a state of emergency due to the threat of Russian gas supply disruptions. spiegel.de
- Lithuania: Ministers of the center-left coalition sworn in. nau.ch
- Austria: No citizenship for Ukrainian who refused to sing national anthem. derstandard.de
- Britain: Strong support for closer ties with EU, poll shows. de.euronews.com
- Great Britain: Dispute over sandwiches for lunch between Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Opposition Leader Kemi Badenoch. spiegel.de
- Italy: Government turns a blind eye to 1.7 million vaccination deniers; fines waived. n-tv.de
- Finland: New Archbishop of the Orthodox Church distances himself from Moscow even after 100 years. rnd.de
- Serbia: Students and government face off after Novi Sad train station collapse. mdr.de
- Ethiopia and Somalia: Dispute over access to the sea buried. n-tv.de
- Iran: Singer makes public appearance without headscarf; judiciary investigates. faz.net
- South Korea: Parliament wants to relieve the police chief and justice minister of their duties. zeit.de
Ifo Institute expects growth of between 0.4 and 1.1 percent next year, depending on economic policy: For the more optimistic scenario, Germany would have to succeed in overcoming structural challenges. A more reliable economic policy could help industry to expand its production capacities, invest more and cut fewer jobs. In the pessimistic scenario, crreping deindustrialization could occur. The Kiel Institute for the World Economy also presented a stagnant forecast for 2025. handelsblatt.com
Share of green electricity in gross electricity consumption will rise to a new high of 54 percent this year: a record 52.5 percent had already been reached in 2023. In 2022, the share was still 46.3 percent. According to the data, electricity generation from renewable sources, primarily wind and solar energy, is expected to increase by four percentage points to around 285 terawatt hours this year – four percent above the previous year’s figure. In addition to solar and wind, biomass, hydroelectric and geothermal plants also supplied renewable electricity. spiegel.de, faz.net
Impetus for economic transformation: 34 young decision-makers and leaders from business and politics have developed 19 position papers on artificial intelligence, the circular economy and re-upskilling as part of the Bertelsmann Stiftung’s „Voices of Economic Transformation“ project. In doing so, they developed solutions for AI that is oriented towards the common good, for containing bias in AI systems and their sustainability effects. bertelsmann-stiftung.de
Farmers‘ profits collapse: The profit per farm fell to an average of 77,500 euros in the 2023/24 financial year that ended in June, according to the German Farmers‘ Association. This is almost 30 percent less than in the same period last year. Joachim Rukwied, President of the German Farmers‘ Association, said in Berlin that farmers were particularly affected by declines in producer prices for important plant- and animal-based products. At the same time, costs remain high, for example for energy. n-tv.de
More from Business, Tech and Science:
- Deutsche Bank hires former Chief Risk Officer Marcus Chromik from Commerzbank. sueddeutsche.de
- Opec expects global oil overproduction in 2025 despite production limits. spiegel.de
- Steelworks in Saxony halts production due to high electricity prices. rnd.de
- World’s richest man: Elon Musk’s fortune rises to $400 billion. faz.net
- Despite the mood of crisis: Germans are spending more money on Christmas presents. t3n.de
- Annual assessment of press freedom in 2024: More than 50 journalists killed. tagesschau.de
- This is how well Trump did in „news deserts“. horizont.net
- „Geist und Geld sinnvoll verbinden“: Stefan von Holtzbrinck is Germany’s media manager of the year. meedia.de
- Philipp Welte has sharp critizism of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s TikTok appearances – and a bitter assessment of the work of the federal government, which he accuses of turning a deaf ear when it comes to the concerns of press representatives. meedia.de
- BdKom and DPRG call for transparency, truthfulness and integrity in the election campaign. pr-journal.de
- New TV job: basketball legend Dirk Nowitzki is to become an NBA expert for Amazon. rnd.de
- Ed Sheeran: New album is ready. musikexpress.de
- The earliest known Kafka manuscript – which was said to be written when the author was 14 – is set to be auctioned: “There is a coming and a going. A parting and often no – reunion“. rnd.de
- When will William take over? The British prince is preparing for the throne. web.de
- Controversial environmental activist: Greta Thunberg – an icon gone astray. zdf.de
- Taylor Swift isn’t the only one celebrating: Celebrities delight in Selena Gomez’s engagement. n-tv.de
- Elton John: Legalizing weed „biggest mistake of all time“. feed.laut.de
- Quarrel over food and money: Ex-cook sues US director Woody Allen and his wife. rnd.de
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- DFB announces results of fan voting: Musiala and Gwinn are male and female national players of the year. kicker.de
- Spectacular rumors: will a world star take over from Rose at RB Leipzig? – Barca legend Xavi. sport.de
- Swedish justice exonerates Mbappé and drops investigation. sueddeutsche.de
- „In the Silver Arrows he was in great hands…“: Formula 1 legend warns Hamilton against Ferrari. sport.de
- Short Course World Championships in Hungary: women’s relay team sets German record. sportschau.de
- World Cup in Val Thorens: Third place – Ski cross racer Maier makes sensational comeback. sportschau.de
- Faux pas of the opponent: At 18 years old, Dommaraju Gukesh is a chess world champion. sportschau.de
Berlin bus drivers will soon be wearing designer clothing by Kilian Kerner. stern.de