Reforms in place to streamline administration

German red-tape drive to slash EUR16 billion from cost burden

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German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's ruling coalition agreed on a bundle of reforms designed to streamline and digitalise administration and cut red tape that it said will save EUR16 billion ($18.8 billion) in bureaucracy costs.

The package, which includes more than 80 separate measures, is meant to lay the foundation for a “fundamental renewal” of the state and reduce the burden on citizens and businesses, according to a government statement on Wednesday.

“This agenda forms the basis for the legislative period - with concrete projects that must now be implemented sustainably and step by step,” said Digital Minister Karsten Wildberger, the former head of electronics retailer Ceconomy AG, whose portfolio includes a remit to modernize the state.

The package was approved on the final day of a two-day cabinet retreat on the outskirts of Berlin, where Merz’s conservatives and his Social Democrat partners were attempting to present a united front after a rocky start to their tenure.