Ruling due on Austria border checks

Leaders of Germany’s ruling coalition are gathering today for a key meeting to push forward major reforms ahead of their summer vacations.

Center-right Christian Democrat (CDU) Chancellor Friedrich Merz is hosting the coalition committee at the chancellery, with a “major package” of measures on the agenda.

Talks are expected to focus on income tax reform, pensions, labor market flexibility and cutting bureaucracy, with the aim of agreeing concrete steps or at least a timeline.

Income tax reform is considered among the biggest hurdles. The coalition aims to provide tax relief, primarily for low and middle income, from the start of next year. The crucial question is how to fund the measures.

Participants include Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil, Labour Minister Bärbel Bas, both from the center-left Social Democrats. The leader of the Christian Social Union, the CDU’s sister party in Bavaria, Markus Söder, is also set to attend.

Given the scope of issues, the meeting could extend beyond a single day.

A court in the Bavarian capital, Munich, is examining whether personal border checks between Germany and Austria are unlawful.

The case was brought by a commuter who regularly travels to Innsbruck and was questioned by federal police on a train in June last year.

After refusing to show identification documents, his bag was searched. He is now seeking a ruling that the check was illegal.

The plaintiff argues the measures breach European Union law, saying systematic checks violate the Schengen Agreement, which abolished internal border controls.

With the Schengen area, countries can temporarily reintroduce checks if there is a serious threat to public order or internal security. Berlin has repeatedly extended these checks.

Guten Tag from DW’s newsroom in Bonn.

You join us as a court in Munich is examining whether personal border checks between Germany and Austria are unlawful.

The case was brought by a commuter from the Bavarian capital who regularly travels across the border.

In Berlin, Germany’s coalition leaders are meeting at the chancellery today for one last big reform push before the summer break.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz wants movement on tax cuts, pensions, labor rules and red tape — but the hardest question is still how to pay for it all.

Stay with us here for these stories and more of what Germany is talking about.