Monday's tops story: Merz considers cabinet reshuffle after Spahn resignation
Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) is considering a cabinet reshuffle of his federal government following the resignation of Jens Spahn as leader of the Union parliamentary group.
"It could be an opportunity to rethink the composition of the federal government," the Chancellor said during ZDF's 'summer interview', which was broadcast on Sunday evening.
Merz said he intended to discuss Spahn's successor "in the coming days".
Thorsten Frei, the current head of the Chancellery, is considered the favourite for the key post.
Spahn resigned after criticism regarding his decision to start a family via surrogacy – a practice that is banned in Germany – intensified sharply.
READ ALSO: What are Germany's rules on having a baby through surrogacy?
Football fans celebrate Spain's men's World Cup victory
After 104 games, the World Cup 2026 came to an end on Sunday night when Spain defeated defending champions Argentina 1 - 0 with a goal in extra-time to win the cup.
In Berlin and around Germany Spanish fans filled up public viewing venues with red and yellow flags. After the game, Spanish fans formed celebratory motorcades, such as one in Stuttgart that blocked traffic for about an hour around midnight.
It was the Spanish men's team's second World Cup title. Their first was in 2010.
This squad came to the match with some impressive stats. Sunday's win marked their 38th consecutive match without a loss, a run that includes their trophy in the 2024 European Championship.
They also displayed the most dominant defence in the championship, having conceded only one goal in their path to claiming the title despite facing off against four top ten ranked teams.
Arrest warrant denied after railway employee falls from moving train
A railway employee remains in critical condition after falling from a moving train during an altercation with a passenger.
Police and the Karlsruhe public prosecutor's office announced on Saturday evening that the passenger – who has a prior criminal record – had been brought before a magistrate.
However, the local court refused to issue an arrest warrant, and the 36-year-old was released.
On Friday evening, a 26-year-old DB Security employee fell from a regional train on the line between Offenburg and Karlsruhe. The train was travelling at around 120 kilometres an hour.
The employee sustained serious injuries and remained in "critical condition" over the weekend.
According to investigators, the 36-year-old – who appeared to be intoxicated – was unable to produce a ticket and refused to provide his personal details.
Two DB Security employees were subsequently called in and the passenger then attacked the staff. During the ensuing scuffle, a train door opened, and the 26-year-old employee fell out.
Investigations into the incident are ongoing.
The court's decision to deny an arrest warrant drew outrage from railway unions who said that an increasing number of violent incidents against staff left workers fearful about going to work.
The EVG railway and transport union said that Chancellor Friedrich Merz "must no longer remain silent; he needs to make the fight against this rampant violence a top priority," the EVG said.
In February, the death of a train conductor – following an assault by a passenger travelling without a ticket in Rhineland-Palatinate – sparked nationwide outrage.
Interior minister warns of heightened security situation in Germany
Interior minister Alexander Dobrindt has warned of a heightened security situation in Germany. Speaking to newspaper Welt am Sonntag, he said he felt compelled to "upgrade the previously defined abstract threat level to a high threat level".
"This means that the risk of attacks must be anticipated in Germany at any time," he said.
"Plots targeting our country are clearly recognisable," the minister said, explaining that these were directed not only at German infrastructure but also individuals or organisations.
Given the increased risk, Dobrindt emphasised the importance of intelligence agencies.
"My goal is for us to evolve the intelligence services into true secret services in order to be competitive and capable of partnering with allied services abroad," he said.
In acute terror situations, this could also mean that domestic intelligence agents could enter and search private homes if police forces were not available in time, the minister said.
SPD plans to tackle wealth and inheritance taxes after summer recess
After the summer break, the SPD wants to focus on negotiations with the CDU/CSU parties on reforming Germany's wealth and inheritance taxes, General Secretary Tim Klüssendorf told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung.
Klüssendorf expressed concern regarding the increasing concentration of wealth in Germany, affecting both property and business ownership.
"As a result, profits are ending up in the hands of fewer and fewer people," he said and criticised the "misguided tax policy" of recent decades.
"That is why we absolutely need changes to inheritance and gift taxes, as well as the reactivation of the wealth tax." He said the SPD planned to make this a "key issue before the year is out".
If the 'tax of the rich' that has been discussed internationally were used as a benchmark, he said this would equate to about one percent annually on assets exceeding 100 million euros.
This alone would generate revenue in the tens of billions, he said, explaining that these funds would help states and municipalities fulfil their responsibilities.
There is a pending Federal Constitutional Court ruling on inheritance tax that is expected by the end of the year that the party wants to examine closely.
In Germany, the wealth tax has effectively not been levied since 1997.
READ ALSO: 'Unfair distribution' - Why Germany's tax system needs to change
AfD widens lead over CDU/CSU in latest Sunday poll
The AfD has slightly widened its lead over the Union parties in the latest Sunday trend poll that asks people how they would vote if a general election were to be held on the next Sunday.
According to the survey – conducted weekly by polling institute Insa for newspaper Bild am Sonntag – the AfD gained one percentage point to take 29 percent of the vote, keeping the far-right party at the top of the rankings.
The CDU/CSU lost one point and currently stands at 21 percent.
The SPD and the Greens each gained one percentage point in the poll – both now have 13 percent of the vote.
The Left Party lost one point, coming in at ten percent, while the BSW fell by one point to three percent and the FDP held steady at four percent. Both the BSW and the FDP would fail to enter the Bundestag at this level.
'Other parties' remained at seven percent, unchanged from the previous reading.
A total of 1,201 people were surveyed between July 13th and July 17th.
With reporting by AFP and DPA.
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