German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has come out in defense of his government’s culture and media commissioner, who was recently accused of a conflict of interest in connection with hosting a private media summit at which companies can pay for access to ministers.
“The allegations against Wolfram Weimer have been proven false,” Merz told German public broadcaster ARD on the sidelines of the G20 summit in South Africa this weekend.
What exactly is Weimar accused of?
Until assuming the role of Culture and Media Commissioner for the German government in May 2025, Weimar and his wife Christiane Goetz-Weimar led the “Weimar Media Group”, which has been organizing and hosting the “Ludwig Erhard Summit” since 2014. [named after a former German chancellor] On the shores of Lake Tegernsee in Bavaria, just south of Munich.
Private sector participants can reportedly pay up to €80,000 ($92,500) for the opportunity to attend the summit and come into contact with senior politicians.
According to the summit website, the 2026 edition will include Economy Minister Katharina Reich and Chancellery Minister Thorsten Frei of Merz’s conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), as well as Research and Technology Minister Dorothy Bar and Agriculture Minister Alois Rainer of the CDU’s Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU).
swiss broadsheet new zurich newspaper Reports last week said Frei and Barr had recused themselves from the summit’s “working night”, but the pair are still listed as speakers, as is Bavarian Premier Markus Söder (CSU).
“When tickets for events with politicians, and especially government members, like the Ludwig Erhard summit, are sold for thousands of euros, it always leaves a bad taste in the mouth,” Social Democrat (SPD) MP Ralf Stegner told T-Online on Monday. While the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has demanded Weimar’s resignation.
Merz: ‘Nothing is being sold’
For Chancellor Merz, the fact that the Media Commissioner is facing criticism from both left and right “only confirms my belief that he is doing a good job.”
Weimar emphasizes that he gave up all his responsibilities, positions and voting rights at Weimar Media Group when he joined the government last year and that he has transferred his shares in the company to a blind trust.
However, he has rejected calls to cancel the summit altogether, arguing that it would be tantamount to “banning my wife from doing her job”.
Weimer, whose State Ministry for Culture and Media also oversees Deutsche Welle’s budget, has repeatedly argued in recent days that criticism against him comes mainly from the right-wing populist camp.
So Merz has nothing more to say on this issue. “Nothing is being sold,” he told ARD. “This is the kind of event that many other media companies also hold regularly.”
A government spokesman said that any ministers attending the Ludwig Erhard summit would receive “neither remuneration nor any other services”.
This article was originally published in German and adapted by Matt Ford.
Edited by: Jennifer Cimino Gonzalez