In a surprising move, the new German federal government, comprising the CDU, CSU and SPD, has already placed 36 political officials in a temporary leave of absence, just a month after taking office. According to documents obtained by the “Spiegel” the officials include 13 state secretaries and 23 ministerial directors.
This new coalition, led by Friedrich Merz, has already replaced more political officials in a shorter period than its predecessors. In contrast, the previous coalition, led by Olaf Scholz, had only replaced 32 officials after three months in office and the last government, under Angela Merkel, had replaced 20 officials five months after taking office.
Following their reassignment, political officials are generously compensated, receiving up to 71.75 percent of their salary for a maximum of three years. A state secretary, for instance, can expect a monthly basic salary of approximately 16,100 euros, while a ministerial director typically receives around 13,300 euros. During the election campaign, the CDU had promised to be frugal with personnel in the event of a government takeover.