German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered a sobering address on the urgent need to reform Germany’s economy and social systems, warning that “we are living beyond our means.” Merz announced sweeping plans to cut bureaucracy, boost digitisation, and launch the Ministry for Digitalisation and State Modernisation. He unveiled a new Work and Stay system to digitally separate asylum processes from labor migration and promised faster skilled worker recruitment across the EU. Merz said Germany remains open and tolerant but will differentiate between refugees and economic migrants, emphasizing the importance of integrating those able to contribute and repatriating those from civil war zones once safe. He called for EU-wide common standards and stressed the danger to democracy when fear undermines community engagement. Finally, Merz advocated for cross-state collaboration and accelerated reforms to restore Germany’s competitiveness and secure its social model for future generations.