Shrunken Intelligence Committee Leaves One Green and AfD Sidelined
Election Loss for Reichinnek and the AfD Deputies
The Parliamentary Control Panel (PKGr) - tasked with overseeing federal intelligence services - is having a facelift. The Union, SPD, and Greens have successfully secured their seats, while the Left party's leader Heidi Reichinnek and the AfD's candidates have fallen short of the necessary majority in the election. As a result, only one opposition MP, the Green politician von Notz, will be joining the committee.
Known for its stringent secrecy and sensitive information handling, the PKGr meetings take place in a soundproof room. Factions nominate their members, but they must be elected by the Bundestag itself. Alexander Hoffmann, CSU group leader, initially expressed reservations about Reichinnek, yet SPD politicians argued that she was a democrat who could secure the position.
The CDU was accused by the Left party of turning the election into a political power play, denying a fraction of democratic opposition its rightful seat in the control committee. The Union's decision was deemed unworthy of democratic parties and the committee by the Left, questioning the Union's ability to maintain two-thirds majorities without their presence.
Warnings Ignored, Greens Abstain
Reichinnek earned 260 votes, but narrowly lost with 258 against, 27 abstentions, and 42 invalid votes according to Bundestag Vice President Andrea Lindholz. Gerold Otten, one of the AfD candidates, obtained 127 votes. Martin Hess, his faction colleague, received 121 votes. The PKGr has undergone a reduction in size from 13 members to 9 compared to previous years, with only six MPs now occupying the seats.
The PKGr, focusing on terrorist threats, anti-constitutional networks, and espionage cases, has become smaller than before. However, the absence of the non-elected members - Reichinnek, Hess, and Otten - means there are now just six parliamentarians involved. The chair will be chaired by the North Rhine-Westphalian CDU MP Marc Henrichmann, while the Union will also have Heiko Hain and Alexander Throm, the SPD will have Daniel Baldy and Sonja Eichwede, and the Greens will have Konstantin von Notz.
Politicians from the Greens had repeatedly voiced concerns in recent weeks about the potential consequences of the reduction in size, warning of decision-making incapacity. The Greens were the only fraction to abstain in the vote on the establishment of the committee since the required majority is not based on the number of actual members, but on its theoretical size, and there are no substitutes.
Unlike most committees in the Bundestag, which reconvene after an election, the PKGr meets independently, meaning that politicians who are no longer in the Bundestag - either because they chose not to run again or were not re-elected - can still take part in the meetings. This was the case recently for the FDP politicians Konstantin Kuhle and Alexander Müller, whose party failed to exceed the five-percent threshold in the February election.
As the Bundestag undergoes a size reduction and committees follow suit, the impact of these changes on intelligence supervision could be significant. The PKGr, responsible for overseeing sensitive intelligence activities, may experience a narrower range of political perspectives, potentially affecting transparency and democratic accountability. However, tighter, less politically fractious oversight could also be on the horizon, depending on how the remaining members perform their duties.
[1] Information sourced from ntv.de, fzo/AFP/dpa
Topics covered:
- German Bundestag
- Intelligence Services
- AfD
- The Left
- Alliance 90/The Greens
- Union fraction
In light of the reduced Intelligence Committee, concerns have been raised by the Green fraction due to the potential lack of democratic accountability. The Greens, alone among all fractions, abstained from voting on the establishment of the committee, citing the theoretical size of the committee, rather than actual membership, determining the required majority.
The Parliamentary Control Panel (PKGr), responsible for overseeing sensitive intelligence activities, now consists of six parliamentarians following the exclusion of non-elected members from EC countries, such as the Left party's Heidi Reichinnek and the AfD's Gerold Otten and Martin Hess. This development in German politics and general-news may have implications for the transparency and democratic oversight of the PKGr, thereby affecting crime-and-justice practices.
