Inside Germany: Clock debates, controversial hedges and the sorrows of Deutsche Bahn
Inside Germany is our weekly look at some of the news, talking points and gossip in Germany that you might've missed. It's published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to their inbox by going to their newsletter preferences or adding their email to the sign-up box in this article.
Will the next government tackle Germany's rail crisis?
"The greatest crisis in 30 years..." That was how Deutsche Bahn CEO Richard Lutz
described the state of Germany's railways on Thursday
. Lutz was presenting the company's latest set of dire figures to reporters, from the €1.8 billion of losses in 2024 to anaemic sales and total debts of €32 billion.
In news that's unlikely to surprise many rail passengers, Deutsche Bahn also hit a new low in punctuality last year, with just 62.5 percent of trains arriving on time.
"We are far from meeting our customers' expectations," Lutz said, perfecting the art of understatement.
The endless sorrows of the national rail service are well known to anyone who lives in Germany. More recently, though, the reputation of Deutsche Bahn has even started to spill across borders.
In a recent article
, The Local France editor Emma Pearson shared her tips for staying sane while travelling on DB's "direct" Berlin to Paris service. In it, she cautioned readers to be stoic and expect the unexpected.
So, as Germany gears up to usher in a new government, will the next 'Grand Coalition' be able to finally get to grips with the railways? On first glance, the noises sound positive - but, much like a cross-country trip on DB Regio, it won't be an easy journey.
According to the latest leaked plans, the CDU/CSU and SPD want to embark on a "fundamental rail reform", clearing out old management and pouring in massive investments. As part of a €500 billion infrastructure fund, tens of billions would be used to spruce up the creaking railways and modernise the busiest routes.
According to Lutz, at least €150 billion will be needed to get the job done. And, given how long some of these projects can take, several more years of delays may be on the cards. Luckily, though, the government is also promising to keep the
Deutschlandticket
, so you can still travel to your destination on a budget - provided you're not too concerned with getting there on time.
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Tweet of the week
Some of us may have made the mistake of deciding to do a spot of cleaning DIY on a Sunday, forgetting about Germany's sacred
Ruhetag
(quiet day) rules.
If your German neighbours have anything to do with it, it's not a mistake you'll make twice.
When it's Sunday, and it's Germany, and you want to watch the world burn.
pic.twitter.com/rMmaxMUDCA
— Nic Houghton (@40PercentGerman)
March 23, 2025
Where is this?
Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Jan Woitas
This atmospheric scene shows the MS Cospuden moored on Leipzig's Cospudener See on Thursday evening during a cosy book reading.
Parallel to the Leipzig Book Fair, which runs until Sunday, more than 3,000 events are taking place at 350 different locations throughout the city for the 'Leipzig reads' reading festival - including atop the city's lakes.
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Clocks go forward... again
It's that time of year again. On March 30th, the clocks go forward and politicians go back to a years-long debate about when (if ever) the practice will be scrapped for good.
The European Union has been
eyeing an end to Daylight Saving Time since 2018
, when a public consultation revealed that millions were in favour. For the past seven years, however, the bloc has been stuck in limbo amid disagreements on how to go about it.
This year Poland is in charge of the rotating EU presidency and wants to put the question of the clocks back on the agenda. Proponents of the change are pushing for a target date to end the changing of the clocks in order to speed up the process.
If they're successful, it's possible the bloc could be gearing up to finally call time on the century-old practice. For now, though, we're still set to wake up one hour later on Sunday morning (or lose one hour of sleep, depending on how you think about it) - and gain an hour of sunlight in the evening.
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When is a hedge too high?
If you've lived in Germany for a while, you've probably realised that there are some
very
strict rules governing neighbourly behaviour. From grilling on your balcony to how often your guinea pigs have sex,
every question imaginable can end up in the German courts
.
Most recently, the Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe was asked to rule on a highly philosophical question: when is a hedge a hedge, and how high can it be?
The question was prompted by a recent dispute in Frankfurt between two neighbours. The plaintiff had demanded that his neighbour cut back her six-metre bamboo hedge, while the neighbour refused to do so.
After much back and forth, the verdict was clear: there is no legal height limit for a hedge in Germany. That said, you do have to make sure it's far enough from your neighbour's property - and don't forget to trim it
at the specified times of year
.
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INTERVIEW: 'Don't let fear deter you from new life in Germany,' minister urges
A decade ago in 2015, as the civil war in Syria grew into even more brutal and bloody conflict, Germany opened its door to hundreds of thousands of refugees. At train stations in cities like Munich and Berlin, groups of people waited to greet the new arrivals, bearing offers of support and shelter, along with water and chocolate bars. For Dr. Andreas Philippi, Lower Saxony's Minister for Labour and Integration and chair of the German Integration Ministers' Conference, this moment marked a high point for Germany. Faced with those fleeing war and persecution, he said, the country experienced a collective "wave of empathy". "You may remember the Chancellor (Angela Merkel) saying, 'We can do this,' and it worked wonderfully because we were a strong country that had built itself up over decades," he told The Local. "We had many resources, we embraced the situation, and we also had a history." Ten years later, however, the tone on immigration has shifted dramatically. 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That's one reason why we've struggled, for example, to convince people in Eastern Germany that the AfD's fear-based policies are wrongfully targeted at minorities and newcomers,' Philippi added. 'As we saw during the election campaign, the focus wasn't on unity, but rather on spreading fear. Politicians like Friedrich Merz took clear positions - even getting support from the AfD at one point - despite knowing their demands weren't compatible with European or international law.' READ ALSO: How German media reveals its bias when foreigners commit crimes In contrast to Merkel's famous phrase - "Wir schaffen das" - the current CDU-led government has focused on pulling up the drawbridge to stop the influx of migrants. Just days after taking office, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) ordered police to step up checks at all of Germany's land borders and reject almost all asylum seekers trying to enter the country. 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"Without it, we'll face a shortage of 33 percent of the workforce in the next 20 to 30 years. That would mean Germany will no longer be able to maintain its prosperity as we have done, through work and through taxation." Currently, the most urgent need for workers is in four key sectors: healthcare, logistics, construction and hospitality. However, the Lower Saxony Labour Minister says there is a demand for workers everywhere. With such an urgent need for new talent, integrating foreigners into work and society becomes a vital part of Germany's economic success. Advertisement As part of this long-term goal, Germany rolled out its new digital visa portal at the start of the year, with the aim of making the application process far quicker and more efficient. In places like India and Indonesia, where waiting times for an appointment can stretch up to nine months, this work is still ongoing. However, for Philippi, the most important part of the process begins after arrival. 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This includes expanding Welcome Centres - a first port of call to help foreigners navigate German bureaucracy and settle into the country. Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier visits a welcome centre for Ukrainian refugees in Romania which shows what such centres in Germany could looks like. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Bernd von Jutrczenka It also involves improving the clunky and fragmented process of getting foreign qualifications recognised - not only by speeding up administration but also by lowering the bar. "Our goal is quick recognition," said Philippi. "In less complex professions, it's better to get people into companies early, where they'll learn the language faster. "We should also reconsider how difficult the exams are. German is a tough language - I met four Moroccan men who were great practical workers but failed because the test questions were too hard. We might need to ease up in some areas." Another way of simplifying the process is to apply less-rigid criteria, he added: "Not just checking curriculums or exam results, but also conducting competency assessments to see what applicants actually know." Advertisement Speeding up processes In future, the goal is to give applicants a preliminary decision within four weeks, with the vast majority receiving full recognition within three months - or six in the most complicated cases. This would mark a major improvement on current waiting times, which can stretch up to a year. Philippi believes a similar goal should be in place for citizenship applications, which can take a notoriously long time to process. With naturalisation offices chronically understaffed and overwhelmed with applications - many of them from former Syrian refugees - eligible candidates can find themselves waiting years to finally receive an answer. READ ALSO: Which German cities have the longest waiting times for citizenship? "As politicians, we have a strong interest in improving bureaucratic efficiency - either by hiring more staff or reducing bureaucracy itself," he said. "If someone has submitted everything and is eligible, it absolutely shouldn't take two years. Once everything is in order, it should not take longer than three months to make a decision - and even that feels too long." Despite the integration ministers' best efforts, however, some fear that the anti-immigrant tone in Germany will still be off-putting to foreigners. While pulling up the drawbridge for asylum seekers, the very skilled workers Germany wants to attract may well decide to go elsewhere. READ ALSO: 'Slap in the face' - Applicants blast Germany's plan to scrap citizenship reform "Of course, some will choose a liberal country like Canada over a right-leaning Germany, especially if they fear discrimination because of their skin colour - that worries me deeply," Philippi said. "But we can only urge people: don't let fear deter you." Advertisement While the headlines may be dominated by anti-migrant rhetoric, the work of making it easier to settle in Germany will continue quietly in the background - with local leaders like Philippi striving to improve the system step by step. READ ALSO: 'A fifth of voters hate me' - How do foreigners in Germany feel about far-right surge?
