Merz sees freedom and liberalism as key to his economic policies

Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Thursday that freedom and economic liberalism are core elements of his economic policy.

Merz, at an event of the Friedrich August von Hayek Foundation in Berlin, called the Austrian economist (1899-1992) and Nobel laureate an influential thinker of liberalism. 

The event also saw the foundation present its biennial award to Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, whom Merz praised in his speech.

Merz did not argue for unchecked capitalism. He said to maintain prosperity, economies need to adjust and, if needed, the state should intervene to cushion social impacts and provide support.

The state also has a role in reducing economic risks from dependencies on critical raw materials. It must help create broader sources of supply, strengthen recycling and, at the EU level, build up stockpiles, the chancellor said. 

Merz also took aim at the prospect of a left-wing coalition governing Berlin, where the far-left party The Left is seeking to form an alliance with the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens.

Recalling his conservative Christian Democratic Union's (CDU) 1976 election campaign slogan, Merz declared: "Freedom instead of socialism."

The chancellor has previously spoken out against such a coalition in the German capital.

Plea for open markets

Merz described freedom as a competitive advantage. "No state can centrally gather the necessary knowledge and determine the right solutions in advance. That is why open markets are needed, that is why entrepreneurial freedom is needed, and indeed competition, so that the best solutions can develop not centrally but decentrally."