The National Standards Control Council (NKR) has issued strong criticism of how the federal government is carrying out its modernization agenda. “The government has made grand announcements and defined many measures, but that is not enough” said NKR chief Lutz Goebel to Handelsblatt. He pointed out that many projects lack a clear steering structure-who is exactly responsible for implementation and how progress will be monitored is often undefined.
Goebel identifies structural problems in the bureaucracy‑reduction efforts led by the new Ministry for Digital and Modernization under Karsten Wildberger (CDU). “The steering is too weak” he said. The compartmentalised ministry principle has made reforms difficult because ministries might block initiatives. Within the government, he notes, the forces of inertia are “gigantic”. At the same time, the NKR is calling for stricter rules on the so‑called “bureaucracy brake”. If new laws create additional bureaucratic costs, those costs must now be fully offset-even when the requirements come from the EU. “If we really want bureaucracy to be noticeably reduced, the EU share must now be considered entirely, not just proportionally” Goebel added. The Ministry for Digitalization and State Modernization did not initially comment when asked.
The Family Enterprises Foundation also proposes further reforms. In an international study, which Handelsblatt reports, scientists recommend “sunset clauses”: regulations would automatically lapse after a set period unless actively renewed-a tool already used in Australia and South Korea. Rainer Kirchdörfer, board member of the Family Enterprises and Politics Foundation, told Handelsblatt, “Wildberger’s ministry has a lot of good plans for reducing bureaucracy, but now it must get moving, jump into action, and increase the pace”. He stressed that Wildberger’s ministry cannot proceed in piecemeal steps; it must “change the mindset across the entire system”.