The key facts

  • The Bundestag votes on Friday to expand the powers of the BND and BfV: the intelligence services will gain the right to active intervention, including cyber operations
  • The BND will be able to store intercepted communications for 6 months and metadata for up to 12 months without prior review
  • The opposition and the Association of German Jurists warn of the blurring of the separation between intelligence and police

What is proposed to change

On Friday, the Bundestag is to vote on a reform expanding the powers of the Federal Intelligence Service (BND), which operates abroad, and the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), responsible for domestic intelligence. Chancellor Friedrich Merz's coalition wants to turn the agencies into 'full-fledged intelligence services' capable not only of gathering information but also of actively countering sabotage, cyberattacks and foreign interference.

The main point — the right to intervene

The key change concerns what the intelligence services will be able to do with detected threats. Currently their task is to collect and analyse information; under the new version they will gain the right to direct intervention. Government examples: the BND will be able to disrupt the operation of a foreign drone manufacturing plant or a chemical weapons laboratory by penetrating their computer systems, or shut down servers of state-supported hackers. The BfV's domestic powers are narrower: intervention is allowed against objects and equipment, but does not give the right to coerce people. The reform also expands data collection and storage, including the use of artificial intelligence: the BND will be able to store intercepted communication content for six months and metadata for up to 12 months without prior review.

The government's arguments

Chancellery head Nina Warken stated that Germany faces constant hybrid attacks and its intelligence services must act 'on equal footing with international partners.' 'To fulfil the state mandate of protecting citizens, our intelligence services need broader powers and enhanced operational capabilities,' she said. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt added that the reform strengthens 'key pillars of the security architecture' and gives the services tools against modern state-sponsored terrorism and extremist violence.

Why critics speak of a secret police

The objections rest on the post-war principle of the German security system: intelligence gathers information, the police use coercive measures. Berlin activist Robert M. explained in a comment to Anadolu that intelligence services may collect data even without suspicion of a crime, but may not use it for operational actions such as searching homes, and the transfer of information to the police is limited to cases of serious crimes. According to him, after the experience of the Nazi Gestapo it was decided that Germany should have no secret police. The German Association of Jurists warned that the reform could 'jeopardise the constitutionally enshrined separation between intelligence services and the police,' and also pointed to the risk of intelligence access to confidential communications between lawyers and their clients even without suspicions against the lawyer themselves.

The opposition demands judicial oversight

Green MP Konstantin von Notz said on ARD that the reform risks allowing intelligence agents to act against citizens without the transparency and legal oversight required for the police. FDP leader Wolfgang Kubicki called the plans 'a historic breach of a taboo' and stressed that restrictions on fundamental rights must remain under full judicial control: 'I do not want a secret police in Germany.' Left Party MP Clara Bünger stated that giving intelligence services powers of intervention, sabotage and retaliatory cyberattacks means 'the planning of a new German secret police.' Security expert Yann St-Pierre, on the contrary, acknowledged the validity of the concerns but called the reform 'absolutely necessary' in current conditions, noting its potential deterrent effect and the reduction of Germany's dependence on foreign intelligence.

Part of a broader shift

The intelligence reform follows the expansion of federal police powers approved by the Bundestag in September, which also drew criticism: Irene Mihalic (Greens) criticised the removal from earlier drafts of protective provisions, including the duty to keep written records after police checks, and Clara Bünger criticised provisions on checks without concrete suspicion and on initiating detention procedures for the purpose of deportation. The security build-up comes against the backdrop of a broader policy: in his first government statement in May 2025, Merz promised to give the Bundeswehr the resources to become Europe's strongest conventional army, while Alternative for Germany doubled its share of the vote to 20.8% in the 2025 elections, becoming the second parliamentary force. The outcome of Friday's vote will determine whether the reform enters into force in its proposed form.