Friday's top story: Government tightens rules on citizen's income
The German government agreed on tougher sanctions Thursday as part of the upcoming Bürgergeld (citizen’s income) reform, aimed at reducing misuse and encouraging recipients to return to work.
From January 2026, those receiving Bürgergeld who miss two job centre appointments will face a 30 percent benefit cut, with total suspension after a third missed appointment, including housing support. The reform also focuses on stricter monitoring to combat undeclared work and welfare fraud.
Opposition voices, especially from the Left Party’s Heidi Reichinnek and the Greens’ Britta Haßelmann, criticised the changes as inhumane and an attack on social welfare. Reichinnek warns the reforms signal a broader assault on the social state, also affecting working people by discouraging demands for better labour conditions. Haßelmann calls the measures cold-hearted and constitutionally questionable.
Meanwhile, employers’ representatives express cautious optimism, hoping for workable new rules to keep job centres effective.
READ ALSO: Minimum wage vs Bürgergeld - How much do you get in Germany?
Two far-right German MPs lose immunity due to accusations of defamation and a Nazi salute
Germany's parliament on Thursday stripped two lawmakers from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) of their parliamentary immunity, with one accused of defamation and the other of making a Nazi salute.
Matthias Moosdorf, a lawmaker known for his friendliness to Russia, is accused of making "a suspected Hitler salute around two and a half years ago" in a room in the Reichstag, AfD spokesman Marcus Schmidt told AFP. Making such a salute is illegal in Germany.
The other AfD member, Stephan Brandner, is accused of an "altercation with a journalist from Der Spiegel", Schmidt said. The journalist says the lawmaker called her a "fascist", and prosecutors opened a defamation investigation into Brandner in 2024.
Deputies from the conservative CDU party, the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the Greens and the hard left all backed lifting the pair's immunity, paving the way for criminal proceedings.
It comes after another AfD deputy, Maximilian Krah -- who is under investigation on suspicion of corruption, money-laundering and taking bribes from Chinese sources -- had his immunity stripped.
Despite its legal woes, the far-right movement is neck-and-neck with Chancellor Friedrich Merz's CDU, according to the latest polls.
READ ALSO: How Germany's leaders are empowering the far right
Berlin motorway closed for police search
A major police operation on Thursday morning caused a full closure of Berlin’s A100 and A113 highways between Stubenrauchstraße and Alboinstraße, according to reporting by the Berliner Zeitung newspaper.
The action was prompted by an investigation into a possible arson attack, with officials searching for evidence related to a recent high-profile incident. Authorities from the prosecutor’s office confirmed that materials were being sought in connection with ongoing criminal proceedings but did not provide details about the underlying case.
The closure affected both directions of traffic and created significant disruption for commuters, though the highways were reopened sooner than initially planned. The police had originally announced the block would last until 3pm. The investigation follows suspected targeted attacks on Berlin’s infrastructure, including the energy network, which resulted in power outages for thousands of residents.
The case remains open, with police continuing their search for clues to identify those responsible for the suspected sabotage.
READ ALSO: Germany's 'most expensive motorway' opens in Berlin
Talks continue between Lufthansa and pilots’ union
Pilots at Lufthansa are ready to strike for higher employer pension contributions, but talks have resumed after stalled negotiations, postponing any immediate industrial action. The union, Vereinigung Cockpit (VC), chose not to issue a new strike threat while discussions continue with Lufthansa's management.
Details of the discussions remain confidential, with both sides withholding public comment.
The dispute centres on increasing employer contributions to pensions of roughly 4,800 pilots at Lufthansa’s main airline and Cargo division -- a demand that has not been met after seven failed rounds of talks. Following a strong union vote for strike action last week, pilots remain prepared to walk out if negotiations fail.
READ ALSO: Will talks between Lufthansa and German pilots' union avert major strike?
The partridge is Germany's Bird of the Year
The partridge (Rebhuhn) has been chosen as Germany’s Bird of the Year 2026, announced by the Naturschutzbund Deutschland (NABU) and the Bavarian Landesbund für Vogel- und Naturschutz (LBV).
A record 184,044 people participated in the nationwide online vote. The partridge received 44.5 percent of the votes, beating the blackbird, tawny owl, and barn owl.
Martin Rümmler, a bird protection expert at NABU, highlighted the partridge as a severely threatened species, with its population sharply declining since around 1990 mainly due to intensive agriculture and pesticide use. The bird’s distinctive orange-brown head and grey chest make it recognisable, with males known for their morning and evening calls.
The Bird of the Year campaign, running since 1971 and publicly voted on since 2021, aims to raise awareness for species conservation.
With reporting by AFP and DPA.
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