Bundestag vs. European Parliament: Christian Democrat Sepp Müller and Leftist Martin Debate in Berlin – Ring Podcast Episode

German politicians from the Bundestag and European Parliament debated whether Germany has once again become the “sick man of Europe” in a televised discussion recorded in Berlin on April 23, 2026.

The debate, part of Euronews’ “The Ring” series, featured Sepp Müller, vice chairman of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democrats in the Bundestag, and Martin Schirdewan, co-chair of the Left group in the European Parliament. They discussed the reform backlog in Europe’s largest economy amid mounting economic challenges.

Schirdewan argued that Germany’s struggles stem from a prolonged strategy of prioritizing cheap exports at the expense of workers, coupled with insufficient investment in both public and private sectors. “People simply aren’t earning enough money. For a long time, a strategy of cheap exports has been pursued at the expense of workers, while at the same time there has been far too little investment—both in the public and private sectors. These are the core issues, and they really need to be addressed,” he said.

The discussion highlighted chronic weak growth, declining exports to China, struggles in key industries like mechanical engineering and automotive, ongoing deindustrialization, demographic pressures, and a shortage of skilled workers as central problems facing Germany. Productivity has stagnated for years despite long-standing awareness of these issues.

Both politicians acknowledged that delayed modernization and insufficient investment in future-oriented industries have contributed to the crisis, with particular criticism directed at Germany’s stubborn adherence to its export-oriented economic model. The debate centered on what measures Germany could take to emerge from this economic stagnation.