German politicians no longer refuse to talk in English. When a BBC reporter asked the then-foreign minister Guido Westerwelle to respond to a question in English, Westerwelle made headlines. 

Westerwelle said in German, "Obviously, we speak German in Germany. 

However, many high-ranking officials are now prepared to flaunt their language skills. When traveling for professional reasons, defense minister Boris Pistorius and foreign minister Annalena Baerbock frequently do this. Additionally, finance minister Christian Lindner has been on Bloomberg TV to discuss the German economy. 

Even during a 2019 commencement speech at Harvard or a CNN interview with Christiane Amanpour, former Chancellor Angela Merkel seldom ever talked in English. However, when Olaf Scholz, her successor, has been on the same US network, he has competed in his second language. 

At a post-election press conference, a British reporter asked him a question in English, and he didn't respond with a Westerwellian sneer but rather with Scholzian sincerity, speaking as dryly in English as he frequently does in his native German. 

However, the Free Democrats (FDP), a party with a strong focus on business, which Westerwelle once chaired, are the ones currently advocating for greater English in official state matters. 

Justice and the economy
English is the preferred language in business settings due to the scale of Germany's economy, which is export-dependent and home to significant international corporations.

Cross-border business issues ineluctably "frequently arise" and necessitate "rapid and professional resolution," the government's deputy spokesperson Christiane Hoffmann told reporters at a news conference last week. Therefore, the cabinet adopted a bill earlier this month to extend business courts in Germany that may also handle disputes in English. It was proposed by the FDP's Justice Minister Marco Buschmann. 

The bill's goal, which must be approved by parliament in order to become law, is to "strengthen Germany's attractiveness as a judicial and business location," according to Hoffmann. 

In 2018, Frankfurt, the financial center of Germany, established one commercial court that may process proceedings in English. It is one of an increasing number of business courts that have been established by member states of the European Union as a result of Brexit. Germany, France, and the Netherlands are among nations seeking to replace the British legal system now that the United Kingdom has left the bloc. 

However, as a "generational divide" impacts Germany's courts, this transformation may take years, Michael Weigel, a practicing commercial lawyer and member of the German Federal Bar Association, told DW. 

People need the necessary time to become proficient in these talents, just like with any other type of specialty. "That is expensive," Weigel said. 

The doubt is consistent with attitudes in other regions targeted for anglicization. The FDP expressed interest in making English an official second language in public administration last year.

The recently passed Skilled Workers Act aims to make it simpler for foreigners to get employment in Germany by, among other things, hastening the recognition of their non-German credentials.

German is the only official language in Germany, according to the country's legal code, and any applications or documents presented in another language must be accompanied by a translation.

The federal and state governments would need to agree to add English as a second official language; however, only the FDP has called for this move.

According to FDP Secretary General Bijan Djir-Sarai, businesses should "be open to English-speaking applicants" in February 2023. Then, you may anticipate that our government agencies will be able to provide these folks with complete service in English.

The head of the German Civil Service Association (DBB), Ulrich Silberbach, asserts that English is already often used in government institutions. He told the newspaper Bild that "Language competence in administration is primarily a question of money," noting that many of his clients speak French, Arabic, or Farsi rather than English. We require training, translation aids, and language mediators, but all of these require staff investments, he claimed. Silberbach continued, "A general English requirement won't help us.

English usage in the classroom and in daily life
Since 2005, English has been taught in every elementary school in Germany with the exception of those located near the French border. According to a database kept by the German Academic Exchange Service, about 10% of higher education degree programs in Germany are presently provided in English. The results include private colleges that operate outside the public system, which is generally tuition-free, and the majority of these are graduate programs. 

Germany consistently does poorly on so-called expat surveys despite having a sizable expat community. Germany scored poorly in the 2023 Expat Insider survey, which was carried out by Munich-based expat network InterNations. A major contributing factor was language. 

Berlin is distinctive: Jens Spahn, the former health minister, publicly lamented in 2017 that speaking only German in the city made it impossible to get by: "It disturbs me that in some Berlin restaurants the waitresses only speak English. That definitely wouldn't occur in Paris, he assured her.

While their parents were denied entrance to the German labor market — despite having good English skills — because they didn't speak German well enough, it has really become totally acceptable for young expats to work in Berlin's cool stores without any knowledge of German.

This is likely to change now that immigration regulations have been updated.