justice
Lawsuit against Schröder office for information on lobbying activity
Former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (SPD) before a hearing in the Bundestag Economic Committee on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project. Photo
© Kay Nietfeld/dpa
What dates did the office of the former chancellor agree on from 2019 to 2022? And were energy policy, Gazprom or Nord Stream 2 an issue? The Schröder office could now have to provide information about this.
The Internet platform FragDenStaat has applied to the Berlin Administrative Court for a temporary injunction against the office of former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (SPD). The aim is to answer questions about possible lobbying activities from the office. This was announced by FragDenstaat in Berlin.
Among other things, the platform wants to know what dates the Schröder office has agreed from 2019 to 2022, whether the topics were known and if so, which of them were related to energy policy, Gazprom, Nord Stream 2 or Rosneft. So far, the office has refused to answer these questions.
A week ago, the Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg ruled in this matter that QuestionDenstaat has a right to information. Nevertheless, the platform suffered a defeat because it had addressed itself to the Federal Chancellery. In its judgment, the Higher Administrative Court found that the office of former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder was not part of the Federal Chancellery, but an independent authority in terms of press law.
Right to information due to “new situation”
In the legal dispute, the Berlin Administrative Court had previously denied the platform a general right to information because FragDenstaat is not a printed press product. The editor-in-chief of the platform, Arne Semsrott, was not a press representative despite having a journalist ID, the press chamber of the Administrative Court in Berlin ruled in June. The supporting association of FragDenstaat, the Open Knowledge Foundation Germany, then had content from the platform printed in the form of a newspaper. Because of the “new situation”, FragDenstaat has a right to information, the OVG Berlin-Brandenburg decided.
A lawsuit by the former Federal Chancellor himself is also pending at the Administrative Court in Berlin. Schröder is demanding that the Bundestag restore his special rights, which were revoked in May. The responsible second chamber plans to hear the case in the first half of 2023, as a court spokesman announced on request. Schröder demands that a former chancellor’s office with employees be made available to him again. The Budget Committee had withdrawn some of Schröder’s special rights and decided to close his office.
The former chancellor has been heavily criticized for his commitment to Russian energy companies and his closeness to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Several of his employees had already given up their posts after the Russian attack on Ukraine.