German Chancellor Friederich Merz has acknowledged his government’s plummeting popularity, which he says is the result of poor messaging, not decisions made.
Merz says he is happy with the work of the coalition of his Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) he is leading, but added there was a need for better “communication”.
Speaking on the CDU’s party channel, Merz said: “The factual decisions are right but our external image still needs to be improved.
“We still have to work a bit on communication,” he noted.
Merz said that his personal decision to restrict arms deliveries to Israel because of the actions of the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip was an example of this.
“I had to decide that quickly, but of course I should have informed the parliamentary group, the party and the public better just as quickly.”
Many within his party, especially the Bavarian Christian Socialist Union (CSU) wing, did not agree with the decision and complained they were not involved in the process.
Merz also pointed to the decision not to reduce the electricity tax for Germans.
“It is right on the merits, but we have not communicated it well,” Merz said.
Earlier this year, the ruling parties decided not to cut the electricity tax for all companies or for private households, despite this being written in the coalition agreement and a having been big item during the election campaign.
Dropping it led to widespread criticism on the government, especially from trade and industry.
Merz went on to say that the government needed to talk about its successes, pointing to the decline in the number of asylum seekers.
He admitted economic recovery was slow but added that a lot of work needed to be done first.
“We also have to convey to the population that it can’t all be done in one day.”
The Chancellor said he was unhappy with what he called the weakness of European states on the international scene. He said he was concerned “that we as Europeans are currently not playing the role in the world that we actually want to play and that we should also play in order to ensure that our interests are sufficiently protected”.
Merz said Europe was unable to put enough pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine.
“We are dependent on the help of the Americans,” he said.
Recent polls have shown that Merz’s government is not popular among a majority of Germans.
According to the latest Insa survey, reported on August 9 by newspaper Bild Am Sonntag, 59 per cent of respondents were dissatisfied with the CDU’s work and only 30 per cent satisfied.
That is far worse than views on the work of previous Socialist chancellor Olaf Scholz’s first 100 days, when 43 per cent of respondents were satisfied and 41 per cent dissatisfied.
The number of Germans unhappy with the job their government is doing has reached a new high. https://t.co/WCbJxx5BB9
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) September 4, 2025
