On January 18, 2023, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos that Germany aims to become one of the first industrialized nations to achieve climate neutrality by 2045. This statement is mostly true. Legal Framework and National Targets The Climate Change Act (KSG) enshrines the goal of climate neutrality by 2045. It stipulates…
On 24 February 2024, an interview with Sahra Wagenknecht, chairwoman of the Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht party, appeared in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ). FAZ is a German newspaper. In this interview, Wagenknecht stated: “Ms. Weidel does not represent far-right positions but rather conservative and economically liberal ones.” This statement turned out to be false. This fact-check focuses on the first part…
Martin Huber, Secretary General of the Christian Social Union (CSU), criticized the priorities of the German government coalition (“Ampel-Koalition”) in a post on X, claiming that the government invests substantial funds in global development projects while failing to support German farmers. While his statement is mostly accurate, some contextual clarifications are necessary. On January 19,…
On September 13, 2023, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, stated during her State of the Union address that the European Union (EU) is attracting more investments in clean hydrogen than the US and China combined. This statement aligns with the context of the European Green Deal and the ambitious goal of establishing the…
Friedrich Merz, federal chairman and chancellor candidate of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) said in an ARD television interview that most of the recipients of citizen’s benefit are able to work. This statement is mostly false. “We have got 5.5 – 5.6 million citizen’s benefit recipients in Germany, around 4 millions of whom are able…
“It is still possible for us to reduce emissions in this decade to such an extent that we can meet the 1.5 degree target.” That is how Olaf Scholz began his speech at the COP28 UN Climate Change Conference. He also mentioned the technologies that are available to help us achieve it. A look at the facts…
In April 2023, Hubertus Heil, Germany’s Federal Minister for Labor and Social Affairs, stated: “By 2035, there will be no job that is unrelated to AI.” According to him, AI will influence all fields of work in the future — whether by automating routine tasks or assisting with complex processes. Upon review, it becomes evident…
On July 2nd, 2016, roughly three weeks before the Brexit referendum, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, David Cameron, appeared on a TV debate broadcast by the English channel Sky News. During his appearance, he urged his fellow citizens to vote against the United Kingdom (UK) leaving the European Union (EU). He claimed that „it would…
It has now been two years since the World Cup in Qatar. Gianni Infantino, FIFA President, claimed that the 2022 World Cup had changed positively for the workers. He says that the workers have much better conditions after the World Cup and that the World itself was the catalyst. This claim was checked, and it…
Europe is facing various challenges: Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the re-election of Donald Trump are causing uncertainty. Wolfgang Ischinger, former German ambassador to the United States, warns in an interview with Sandra Maischberger: “We have a security problem in Europe. We have a noticeable, significant gap in defense spending over the next few years.”…