German lawmakers reject contentious immigration law – DW – 01/31/2025

The leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has slammed the CDU/CSU chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz after the migration reform bill which he proposed was rejected by the Bundestag on Friday.

Alice Weidel said the rejection of the German parliament signified the “implosion of a conservative people’s party,” adding “this was the dismantling of Friedrich Merz as a candidate for chancellor.” 

With the German elections set to take place on February 23, the far-right AfD is currently polling second behind Merz’s conservative bloc.

Weidel said her party unanimously voted in favor of the bill. “There are no dissenters who stab a legitimate cause in the back,” she said. 

“Friedrich Merz jumped as a tiger and ended up as a bedside rug.”

DW’s Chief Political Editor Michaela Kuefner described Bundestag rejection on the anti-migration law as a “big blow” for the conservative CDU/CDU chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz.

“His own conservative political camp let him down after accepting votes from the far right AfD Party,” Kuefner wrote in an online post.

The “vote followed 3 hours of suspended proceedings and ugly scenes,” in the German parliament, and Merz failed “to unite his own bloc,” according to Kuefner.

“Two facts you need to know: Merz did not communicate or consult with AfD on anti migration legislation and motions. He did, however, break with his own pledge not to accept AfD support if it is key to secure a majority.”

SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich sees the rejection of the “Influx Limitation Law” in the Bundestag as a bruising defeat for CDU/CSU Chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz.

“Mr. Merz has failed twice today,” Mützenich said. “Failed to find the way to the AfD. Failed to gain the majority in the German Bundestag.”

In just over three weeks, a nationwide election will take place in Germany, with a particular focus on immigration and the economy.

According to Mützenich, the voters would have to decide “whether the fate of our country should be placed in the hands of such a candidate in difficult times” on February 23.

The German Bundestag has narrowly rejected the “Influx Limitation Law.”

The legislation was designed to tighten rules in existing laws on migration in Germany.

But the legislation was rejected by 349 lawmakers, with 338 in favor while five abstained.

A senior member of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) has implored the conservative CDU/CSU opposition bloc not to rely on the votes of the far right to pass a divisive anti-migration bill.

“Ladies and gentleman, it’s not too late,” the Chairman of the SPD parliamentary group Rolf Heinrich Mützenich told lawmakers.

But should the CDU/CSU bloc rely on the far-right AfD, “the fall from grace will be with you forever,” he warned before concluding Germany must “return to the center of democracy.”

An exceptionally emotional debate is over. It is rare to hear such serious accusations — ranging from breach of trust to disgrace to lies — in the Bundestag.

After two hours of debate, nerves were frayed. Perhaps because the parliamentarians are in the middle of an election campaign? Or was it because of the deeply divisive issue of migration policy? Or was it because, for the first time, a law could be passed only with the help of the far-right AfD?

A last-ditch attempt by the Social Democrats and the Greens to refer the law to the home affairs committee failed. The roll call voting will go ahead today.

Sahra Wagenknecht, head of the eponymously-named populist Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance, refused to end her speech on time.

The vice president of the Bundestag tried to interrupt Wagenknecht several times and, in the end, shut down her microphone.

Wagenknecht called the whole debate hysterical, adding that it was the best campaign aid the far-right AfD party could have dreamed of. Nevertheless, she said, she would vote for the law and with the AfD.

Green party leader Felix Banaszak asked Friedrich Merz to answer his question with a “yes” or “no” after Merz delivered his speech.

He asked if Merz was willing to accept AfD’s vote to be chancellor.

In response, Merz asks Banaszak if he’s read the newspaper in the last few weeks because he’s repeatedly ruled out working with the AfD.

The vice chairman of the far-right AfD party attacked the conservative CDU/CSU alliance, but said his party will vote in favor of the so-called “Influx Limitation Law” anyway.

“There can only be a fundamental change in migration policy with the AfD. The CDU/CSU has copied our demands in its draft law and that is why we are agreeing to it,” said Bernd Baumann.

He complained that the conservatives are “dithering” again, because they reached out to the Social Democrats and the Greens this morning.

The far-right lawmaker said the CDU/CSU were only now turning to tackle migration four weeks before the election. “That is not credible.”  

Germany’s foreign minister appealed to the conservative CDU/CSU bloc candidate to be chancellor, Friedrich Merz, to reverse course on collaboration with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).

“We all make mistakes, but responsibility means being able to correct ourselves,” said Annalena Baerbock from junior coalition partner the Greens.

“It’s not about yourself, it’s about Germany. There are times when you have to correct your policy by 180 degrees. That is precisely the question now. Do the right thing.”

Baerbock said that, in her view, voting with the AfD was wrong and that Wednesday — when the conservatives, business-focused Free Democrats, and AfD voted together — had been a “day of shame.” 

Friedrich Merz, the leader of the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), reiterated that he would never shake hands with the far-right AfD party.

He was speaking after the Bundestag debate on the so-called “Influx Limitation Law” resumed.

Merz acknowledges the AfD will support his bill. 

He emphasized the importance of the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens agreeing to the bill to form a larger majority.

Merz claimed that the law contains only a few controversial provisions.

Addressing Chancellor Olaf Scholz of the SPD personally, Merz demanded that the parliamentary groups in the middle of the political spectrum act together.

“There are many who are concerned about democracy, but there are many who are concerned about security and order in this country and expect decisions to be made,” he said. 

The debate in the Bundestag resumed after four hours of crisis meetings between the parliamentary groups. 

The leader of the Social Democrats in parliament, Rolf Mützenich, accused the leader of the conservative CDU, Friedrich Merz, of refusing to compromise and pushing forward aggressively.

The so called “Influx Limitation Law” is now set to be voted on, even if it requires the support of the right-wing AfD to pass. 

Mützenich expressed grave concerns, stating, “Today’s process is more dramatic than Wednesday’s breach of taboo. For the first time, there is a danger that AfD votes will create law, not just a motion.”

Mützenich urged Merz to “close the gateway to hell” and restore the firewall against the AfD.

Germany’s main political parties have long had a consensus that cooperation with far-right parties is taboo — a consensus that drew lessons from the horrors of the Holocaust and World War II.

But that consensus, often described as a “firewall” by German politicians, seemed to have been undermined on Wednesday when a motion on migration policy put forward by the conservative CDU/CSU bloc was approved by the Bundestag with the support of the far-right AfD.

DW looks at the past and present history of the “firewall” — and where it has already been breached.

Read more here: Germany: What is the “AfD firewall”?

Friedrich Merz, the parliamentary leader of the opposition CDU/CSU bloc and also its top candidate for February snap elections, has said the vote on a controversial draft bill that would tighten Germany’s migration rules must go to the vote on Friday as planned.

He told members of his parliamentary group that he had spoken with the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens but that they wanted no changes, sources said.

For this reason, the Free Democrats (FDP) had retracted their call for the bill to be first sent to the parliamentary committee on domestic affairs, he reportedly said.

“We have to decide today,” Merz was quoted as saying, adding that it was now clear that there would be no more talks with SPD or the Greens — the members of Germany’s minority government — about migration measures during this legislative period.

The vice president of the Bundestag, Katrin Göring-Eckhardt of the environmentalist Green Party, has briefly taken to the floor to explain to visitors in the gallery what is going on.

She said they should not be disappointed that they only see empty chairs instead of a lively debate.

A 30-minute recess called for by the CDU/CSU bloc has been extended as parliamentary group leaders from various parties hold discussions with CDU leader Friedrich Merz.