Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser rejected the Union’s proposal to implement a stricter immigration policy. During the coalition negotiations, Faeser — a member of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) — presented the Migration Budget Report, which highlighted a decline in the number of refugees in Germany.
She also criticized Merz for the Union faction’s hardline stance on immigration and asylum, and strongly condemned the head of the Federal Office for Migration’s call to abolish the individual right to asylum and replace it with humanitarian quotas. “The right to asylum is not up for discussion within the party,” Faeser stated.
The Christian Social Union (CSU), the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) are entering the fifth round of negotiations to form a new government amid a sharp dispute over proposals by Union leader Friedrich Merz to impose stricter immigration measures.
Hans-Eckhard Sommer, head of the Federal Office for Migration, had called for the abolition of the individual right to asylum and its replacement with humanitarian quotas, so that Germany could better control whom it admits.
Sommer’s proposal drew strong criticism from the Social Democratic Party and the Green Party. Felix Banaszak, leader of the Green Party, called for Sommer’s resignation, arguing that his statements were incompatible with his position.
“Questioning such a valuable principle as the fundamental right to asylum is incompatible with his office,” the Green’s leader said.
The Federal Foreign Minister’s report indicates that asylum applications dropped by 50% in 2023/2024, while returns increased by 55%.
The report highlights that border controls implemented since 2023 have resulted in the return of 50,000 migrants and the arrest of 2,000 smugglers.
The interior minister cautioned against what she called a “poisoned debate” on migration.
She criticized Merz’s migration ambitions as “illusions” and emphasized that repealing the migration law will not address the crises and wars that drive an increase in the number of migrants, nor will it eliminate the presence of smugglers.
The migration plan proposed by Federalist leader Merz encounters numerous challenges, particularly in negotiations with the Social Democratic Party.
While the Federalist faction approved a proposal to reject asylum seekers at the border, implementing this plan requires cooperation with neighboring countries—a condition that has been rejected, particularly by Poland.
The latter has seen protest demonstrations at its border with Germany against both German immigration policy and the Dublin Agreement, rendering the proposed measure unlikely to be implemented.
NGOs are also strongly opposed to Merz’s migration plans, arguing that tightening the asylum policy violates human rights, and that rejecting asylum seekers at the border means effectively revoking the right to asylum.
