'Simply too much:' Germany's Merz wants EU Commission to cut red tape

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Wednesday called on the European Commission to reduce bureaucracy as EU leaders gathered in Copenhagen for an informal summit.

Before his departure to the Danish capital, Merz said he would push for excessive regulations to be "fundamentally corrected."

"It is simply too much. And we will talk about it," said Merz.

The competitiveness of European industry has been the main topic in Brussels for the past two years, the chancellor argued, adding that EU policy on regulation should reflect this.

As he struggles to turn around Germany's recession-hit economy, Merz has in recent days upped the pressure on his party colleague Ursula von der Leyen, who has led the commission since 2019.

In a speech on Friday in Cologne, Merz said he wanted to put a "stick in the cogs" of the Brussels machine.

While Merz said he is "a truly convinced European," he added that the ever increasing EU regulations "cannot go on like this."

"We must now put the stick in the cogs of this machine in Brussels so that it stops," said Merz.

He stressed he was not against Europe, but only had "a certain feeling that people are losing their support for this great European project."