“Lobby Cabinet”: How closely the new Merz ministers are intertwined with interest groups and business

Criticism of the planned composition of the future black-red cabinet continues apace: Too few East Germans, too little diversity, too little professional qualifications – these are the main allegations. But it goes even further: Friedrich Merz, as Jakob Blasel , spokesperson for the Green Youth, put it on Platform X, has put together a “lobby cabinet.” “The business lobby has no place in the government,” he added. Similar sentiments can be heard from other parts of the designated opposition. But how justified are these allegations? At least four individuals have already been criticized – they are said to have close ties to lobby interests.

Vice-Chancellor Lars Klingbeil (SPD), possible Finance Minister

Lars Klingbeil , the new Federal Finance Minister and SPD politician, is also under scrutiny shortly after taking office, as he will govern Germany as Vice Chancellor. The reason: His wife, Lena-Sophie Müller, is managing director of the D21 initiative – an influential network promoting the digital society. Critics see this as a potential conflict of interest.

The Klingbeil/Müller case is therefore likely to be a test of how sensitively the new federal government deals with possible close relationships between politics and NGOs – and what standards it applies to itself in this regard.

Political observers are already calling for clear rules on the separation of official and private life in this case as well. They are concerned about transparency and prevention. The appearance of a conflict of interest could jeopardize trust in political decision-making processes – especially at a time when the credibility of political institutions is already under pressure.

As a potential finance minister, Klingbeil will not only be responsible for the federal budget, but will also have considerable influence on which political projects receive priority – and which receive funding. There could be overlaps with the interests of the D21 initiative, particularly in areas such as digital infrastructure, IT funding programs, and innovation budgets.

Lena-Sophie Müller has been managing director of the D21 initiative since 2014. In this role, she regularly acts as an expert on digital policy, including in discussions with political decision-makers. The close institutional contact between the NGO and the federal government is considered well-established.

The D21 initiative is one of the largest civil society networks for digitalization in Germany. Businesses, academia, and politicians are involved in advancing issues such as digital participation, administrative modernization, and education policy. Federal ministries are also among the network's supporters or cooperation partners. The association receives grants from four ministries, amounting to approximately €150,000 annually.

The acting federal government dismissed the matter, also pointing out that "it is not its task to collect, monitor, or evaluate general information about the activities and contacts of organizations." This applies regardless of whether these organizations receive funding or not. Klingbeil even questioned the initiation of coalition talks with the CDU because of the incident. Many suspected the reason behind it was that his wife is also an NGO.

The comprehensive list of questions submitted to the federal government by the CDU/CSU one day after the federal election addressed the funding of 17 organizations, including Greenpeace, Omas gegen Rechts (Grandmas Against the Right), Deutsche Umwelthilfe (German Environmental Aid), Campact, the Amadeu Antonio Foundation , and BUND (German Unity and the Environment). Questions were also asked about the non-profit status of individual organizations, their ties to federal authorities and international organizations, and necessary reforms.

Piquant: The Union parliamentary group had asked a total of 551 questions in February and justified this by saying that demonstrations by numerous organizations at the beginning of February were "not simply directed 'against the right'" but "very decidedly" against the CDU.

Karsten Wildberger, independent, Digital Minister on the CDU ticket

Karsten Wildberger has been managing director of Media-Saturn-Holding GmbH since 2021. Now he is set to be appointed Minister for Digitalization and State Modernization in Friedrich Merz's upcoming cabinet. The decision to bring the 56-year-old entrepreneur into the government sparked widespread criticism when it was announced on Monday. Lobbycontrol, an association, called him a "top lobbyist" and warned against excessive influence of the business community on the future Digital Ministry.

Wildberger is Vice President of the CDU's Economic Council. Chancellor-elect Merz already held this position between 2019 and 2021. "The Economic Council is not a party body, but rather a powerful lobby group that is formally independent of the CDU," writes Lobbycontrol. Contrary to what its name suggests, the CDU's Economic Council is not a party body, but rather an independent lobby group. The President of the Economic Council and lobbyist Astrid Hamker also serves in an advisory capacity on the CDU's Federal Executive Board.

The CDU's Economic Council is considered economically liberal and calls for, among other things, tax cuts for entrepreneurs, no political interference in the minimum wage, the reduction of bureaucracy, and increased digitalization. The lobby group also advocates compliance with the debt brake and the abolition of the solidarity surcharge.

Wildberger's membership on the supervisory board of Ceconomy AG and his vice presidency of the German Retail Association (HDE) are also controversial. Immediately after announcing his new position as Digital Minister, Wildberger asked the supervisory board of Ceconomy AG to relieve him of his duties effective May 5, one day before the election of the Federal Chancellor in the German Bundestag.

According to Lobbycontrol, Wildberger, as vice president of the HDE, represents the interests of corporations such as Aldi, Lidl, and Amazon. "The Economic Council and the HDE are among the largest lobby associations in Germany, with expenditures of over five and seven million euros, respectively," writes Lobbycontrol.

Katherina Reiche, new CDU Minister of Economic Affairs

With the appointment of Katherina Reiche as the new Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, the German government is bringing a distinguished energy expert into the cabinet. Reiche previously served as Managing Director of the E.ON subsidiary Westenergie and as Chief Executive Officer of the Association of Municipal Utilities (VKU). Her decades of experience in business and politics are considered by many to be a professional qualification – but it is precisely this dual role that is now attracting sharp criticism.

The accusation: too close proximity to the lobby. In 2015, Reiche moved directly from her position as Parliamentary State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Transport to the leadership of the VKU – a lobby association representing the interests of municipal energy and water utilities – without a waiting period. A controversial point: The move occurred on the very same day that the Federal Cabinet passed a law on waiting periods for government members – which, however, was not yet in force. This allowed Reiche to legally circumvent the new rules, which observers consider morally questionable.

Organizations such as LobbyControl and Transparency International see such "revolving doors" as a significant risk to political integrity. The immediate transition from government positions to business-related functions undermines trust in the independence of political decision-making and opens the door to influence by industry associations.

Christina Deckwirth, spokeswoman for Lobbycontrol, told the Berliner Zeitung before Reiche's announcement as Minister of Economic Affairs: "It is problematic when people from the business world with clear lobbying interests suddenly assume government responsibility. If it turns out that Katherina Reiche becomes Minister, we would have a person with pronounced economic interests in a key position in the government."

From Lobbycontrol's perspective, it's particularly controversial that Reiche, as CEO of the energy company Westenergie, is currently directly responsible for the energy sector – precisely the department for which she could now assume political responsibility. Deckwirth sums it up: "A female energy company CEO is supposed to become Energy Minister – that poses considerable risks for conflicts of interest. It's questionable whether she can even make balanced decisions."

Reiche herself has consistently defended her approach. Her commitment to energy, environmental, and climate policy has been a constant throughout her career since her election to the Bundestag in 1998. Her new role in the ministry is a logical continuation of this path. And there are also many advocates who welcome the fact that a woman with expertise is now heading a ministry.

At the same time, her inauguration once again underlines the urgent need for binding and effective rules governing the transition between politics and business. Reiche's case is not an isolated one—but a particularly prominent one.

Incidentally, her partner, former CSU politician Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, is also familiar with her new responsibilities. In 2009, at just 37 years old, he served as Minister of Economic Affairs and later became Minister of Defense. After resigning in the wake of a plagiarism scandal, he now works as a lobbyist, management consultant, and publicist. In other words, he's a mastermind beyond compare. But also someone who deals openly with the pressures of politics. In a podcast in 2024, he spoke openly about his depression and the strain of early careers in power—a personal story that is now bringing the new ministerial couple additional public attention.

Wolfram Weimer (independent), future CDU Minister of State for Culture

It's rare for the appointment of Minister of State for Culture to spark broad political debate. Wolfram Weimer's appointment is different . The non-partisan journalist, nominated by Friedrich Merz, is met with rejection and criticism. This is primarily due to his conservative positions, which are viewed with suspicion in the traditionally left-liberal cultural milieu. Critics also argue that Weimer's lack of experience in the cultural sector speaks against him. A petition with several thousand signatures has even been drawn up against his nomination.

Wolfram Weimer worked as a journalist and media manager for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), the Springer Group, and Burda. He headed the magazine Focus and the daily newspaper Welt. He later founded the magazine Cicero and his own publishing house, which publishes titles such as Business Punk, Pardon, The European, and Wirtschaftskurier.

Weimer now transferred the publishing house to his wife, Christiane Goetz-Weimer. Since the Minister of State for Culture is responsible for media policy matters in addition to art and cultural funding, monument protection, memorial policy, and federal film funding, this might otherwise have led to a direct conflict of interest.

The Lobbycontrol association nevertheless considers a conflict of interest possible. He told Deutschlandfunk that Weimer, in his role, is directly responsible for Deutsche Welle, which competes with his company. The conflict of interest therefore continues even after his resignation from his publishing house. Lobbycontrol also criticizes Weimer for having generally questioned public broadcasters in the past.