- Hamburg CDU leader Thering calls for border controls
Hamburg's CDU state and faction leader Dennis Thering calls for controls at EU internal borders to curb illegal entries. "We must limit migration," he told the German Press Agency. The effectiveness of border controls was evident during the UEFA European Football Championship, with around 8,000 illegal entries and 230 smugglers apprehended at German borders alone during that short period. "So one has to ask, why wasn't this done earlier?"
The European Union is evidently unable to effectively protect its external borders. "As long as this is the case, we must continue to have stationary controls at German borders," he said. "If the EU cannot manage to protect European external borders, then the countries must help themselves. No one wants that, but the pressure on the EU must increase."
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) is responsible for ensuring "that there is a reasonable border control at EU external borders, then German border controls could be abolished again," said Thering.
Hamburg's CDU leader demands new refugee distribution mechanism
Ultimately, it's also about social cohesion. "Regarding refugee accommodation, we can see here in Hamburg that we are at our limit. The Senate has already publicly acknowledged this." Mayor Peter Tschentscher (SPD) must therefore push harder at the federal level for a different distribution mechanism. "The Königstein key is the completely wrong approach for city-states like Hamburg. We must achieve a better distribution over the entire federal territory," said Thering.
The Königstein key, which the states also use for distribution in financial questions, only considers population to a third, while tax revenue - i.e., economic power - accounts for two-thirds. This disadvantages financially strong city-states like Hamburg, Thering believes.
Tschentscher had also repeatedly called for a fairer distribution, but to no avail so far.
Thering: Must revoke German citizenship from criminals
Thering also called for a tougher stance on dual nationals who commit crimes in Germany. "For us as the CDU, it's clear: Those who commit crimes here have forfeited their right to residence. And if someone with dual citizenship commits a crime, it's necessary to revoke the German passport and then deport them," he said. "But the SPD and Greens don't want to talk about this topic either."
He described Interior Senator Andy Grote's (SPD) initiative to deport criminals and dangerous individuals to non-safe countries like Syria or Afghanistan as insufficient. "That's clearly not enough, and it once again shows this reflexive reaction: This SPD and Green Senate only reacts when the pressure is maximum," he said.
For years, the SPD and Greens had rejected calls to deport to Afghanistan. "Something should have happened much earlier. The change of heart comes too late."
The German Press Agency reported Thering's call for continuous border controls due to the EU's inability to effectively secure external borders. Later in the discussion, Thering also criticized the use of the Königstein key, which he believed disadvantaged financially strong city-states like Hamburg in refugee distribution.
