When he talked about the supercomputer that they wanted to develop in Bavaria, the otherwise robust, fatherly Prime Minister briefly sounded like an astonished boy. Such a quantum computer could carry out computing operations that would take current high-performance computers thousands of years, explained Markus Söder: “We don’t yet have any idea what is happening there. We can’t yet estimate the possibilities behind it.” But it is important that you don’t just watch from the outside, but rather have the key to take part in this development.
From Söder’s point of view, Bavaria is not only taking part in the development of new future technologies, it is leading it. “We are the Silicon Valley of Europe and want to develop Bavaria into the leading high-tech location on the European continent,” said Söder, as usual, confidently in his government statement in the state parliament on Tuesday. It was his first statement in the new legislative period. You can hear it: Familiar things from the election program, a raving excursion into future technology, numerous blows against the alleged ban coalition in Berlin – and our own ban plans: on the topic of gender.
Bavaria wants to continue to be at the forefront when it comes to future technologies: the “High-tech Agenda, a funding initiative of the Free State,” will be continued as announced and “topped,” said Söder. It should receive new impetus with a new award, the “High-tech Oscar” for the brightest minds and start-ups in Bavaria. He also named a test track for a magnetic levitation train, a test center for rocket engines and a university on the subject of artificial intelligence as specific projects.
The magnetic levitation train could be built in Nuremberg. A possible test route was considered between the university, trade fair and clinic, said Söder. Such a train is cheaper than a subway, noiseless and climate-neutral. Germany’s first AI university is also to be built in Nuremberg, Söder announced: “We are making the TU Nuremberg into Germany’s first university specialized purely in AI: the Franconian University of Artificial Intelligence.”
Oberpfaffenhofen is to become the “Houston of Germany”.
There are similarly ambitious plans for the German Space Operations Center in Oberpfaffenhofen. According to Söder, this should become the “Houston of Germany” – Houston is the headquarters of the US space control center. It is “very likely” that the European lunar control center will be located in Oberpfaffenhofen. Söder had already expressed this idea in the past. In addition, Bavaria is now aiming for a test center for future-oriented rocket engines, said Söder. He garnished this announcement, now fully a Jedi Knight, with the statement: “May the Force be with us.”
But Söder not only wants to work for future technologies, but also for the future of the next generation. He has four children of his own, “their future is the most important thing to me.” They want to achieve the climate goals, said Söder. “We plant trees, protect bodies of water, restore moors.” However, all of this must be done with a sense of proportion and keep the interests of the local economy in mind.
Söder promised to expand electromobility as well as wind power. Nine billion euros are also expected to be invested in the rails. Bavaria is a car country but also a railway country, he said, which earned him a few laughs from the opposition in view of the trains that had been stuck in the weather chaos for days.
“We will even ban gender in schools and administration”
He also received applause from the AfD for his proposal to ban gender in authorities and schools. “With us there will be no compulsory gendering, on the contrary: we will even ban gendering in schools and administration,” he said. Söder is following the example of Saxony-Anhalt and Brandenburg, which also recently banned gendering with special characters in school.
When it comes to schools, Söder also complained about the results of the PISA study that were announced on Tuesday. These are a “slap in the face of our country”. He announced that primary schools should focus more on the core skills of reading, writing and arithmetic, something that had also been agreed in the cabinet.
Söder also promised to create around 9,000 new jobs in schools by 2028: 6,000 for teachers and 3,000 for support staff. At the same time, he once again promoted the planned weekly constitutional fifteen minutes. Talking about the value of the constitution should help to prevent young people from going down the wrong path. “I’ll put it this way: Anyone who writes ‘Sieg Heil’ in a guest book must have really gone wrong in their life,” said Söder, alluding to AfD MP Daniel Halemba. He missed the inaugural session of the state parliament at the beginning of October after he was arrested by the police on suspicion of sedition.
After the speech, AfD parliamentary group leader Katrin Ebner-Steiner expressed satisfaction that Söder had taken an AfD concern into account with the gender ban. Otherwise, she attacked the Prime Minister sharply and accused him of inaction on the migration crisis, “which is actually an invasion crisis.”
For Green party leader Katharina Schulze, Söder’s government statement was “that you are cursing Berlin and celebrating unambitious ideas as a breakthrough.” She spoke of a “powerless coalition” and accused the CSU and Free Voters of failing to expand renewable energies and blocking the construction of power lines. Because Söder had announced a gender ban, Schulze called the CSU a “ban party”.
“The person who is actually powerless is the federal government,” countered FW parliamentary group leader Florian Streibl. In turn, he certified that the Bavarian coalition had a “pragmatic, ideology-free policy with common sense.” SPD parliamentary group leader Florian von Brunn said he heard “an old campaign speech” from Söder without any news.