German Politics Emerge in Dispute Over Mask Purchase Report
The leader of the Social Democratic Party’s (SPD) parliamentary group, Matthias Miersch, has called for the immediate and full publication of a report on the procurement of masks by the former Health Minister, Jens Spahn, during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
Miersch emphasized the importance of transparency in shedding light on the actions of the past, stating that the report should be made available to the German Bundestag immediately. The report, which was commissioned by Spahn’s successor, Karl Lauterbach and completed before the last general election, is said to be highly critical of Spahn’s handling of the mask procurement process.
The report, which has not been publicly released, reportedly contains personal data and the current Health Minister, Nina Warken, has so far refused to publish it, citing data protection concerns. Miersch, however, dismissed this argument, pointing out that the practice of redacting sensitive information is common in parliamentary proceedings.
Miersch also expressed support for the proposal to establish a parliamentary inquiry commission to investigate the lessons that can be learned from the pandemic, an idea previously put forward by Spahn. According to Miersch, such a commission would be essential in order to evaluate the actions taken on all political levels during the pandemic and to better prepare for future crises.