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Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP): Four people have to go, three will be thanked
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Political Moments / IMAGO
The letter is inconspicuous and in a sober tone, but the upheavals it announces are great: Christian Lindner is parting ways with two department heads and two department heads in the Ministry of Finance.
He wants his house to "focus more on our political projects and give the organization a long-term strategic perspective," the FDP chairman explains his decision in the letter that SPIEGEL has seen.
When he took office, Lindner had taken over a large number of staff from his predecessor Olaf Scholz (SPD), who is now Chancellor.
According to the letter, the head of the tax department, Rolf Möhlenbrock, will be replaced.
His successor is Nils Weith;
he is moving from the Ministry of Economics to Lindner's department, as is Oliver Lamprecht, who will head the central department from now on.
Martina Stahl-Hoepner is going into temporary retirement.
The head of the department for customs, sales tax and consumer taxes, Tanja Mildenberger, also has to step down.
Armin Rolfink, previously Vice President of the General Customs Directorate in Bonn, will take over her post.
Harald Joos, previously head of the information technology department, is leaving without a named successor: according to reports from "Handelsblatt" and "FAZ", this is to be dissolved as an independent area.
Lindner's letter states succinctly that Loos' appointment as head of department expires "at the end of this month".
It is striking that Loos does not thank him for the work he has done - in contrast to the other three managers.
Looking at the new appointments, it is striking that none of them come directly from the Treasury.
Apparently, Lindner did not find what he was looking for in his own house - but twice with his green cabinet colleague Robert Habeck.
However, this only seems surprising at first glance.
Because there is no liberal tradition in the Ministry of Finance.
Since the 1960s, the house has been run exclusively by the SPD or the Union.
Employees with an FDP party card are therefore a rarity.
In contrast, the Ministry of Economic Affairs was considered the hereditary court of the Liberals for decades.
Experts with an affinity with the FDP felt they were in better hands there than in the more interventionist-oriented Ministry of Finance, if only because of its traditionally liberal economic orientation.
This distribution of preferences appears to be changing.
A clear signal to subordinates – and not a good one at that
According to reports, the Ministry of Finance is astonished that Nils Weith, a former head of department from the Ministry of Economic Affairs, will in future lead the tax department.
In doing so, he omits one level of middle management – the position of sub-department head.
Such a “jump promotion,” as it is called in ministry jargon, is rare.
Especially in a foreign department.
In his letter, Linder mentions that his company has “excellent, motivated and loyal managers and employees”.
But despite all the praise, he sends a clear signal internally: no one was excellent enough to become a suitable successor.
And something else stands out: two men and two women have to go.
They are replaced by three men.
sol/rei
