The key facts

  • The Bundestag approved the intelligence reform: 309 votes in favor, 190 against, 71 abstentions
  • The BfV will be able to covertly enter homes and intervene in threats involving explosives and weapons; the BND will be able to shut down servers of hacker groups abroad
  • Arrests and open searches remain the exclusive competence of the police; the legality of measures will be reviewed by a panel of former judges

What the Bundestag decided

Germany's parliament on Friday approved a sweeping reform of the intelligence services, granting them expanded powers to counter security threats, including conducting sabotage operations abroad. The bill was supported by 309 deputies, 190 voted against, and 71 abstained. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt called the changes a 'reform of the century' and stated: 'We need to strengthen democracy against those who attack it — both from within and from outside.'

What powers the intelligence services will gain

The reform expands the powers of the Federal Intelligence Service (BND), responsible for foreign intelligence, and the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), which handles domestic intelligence. Under certain conditions, the BfV will be able to go beyond gathering information and monitoring people and move to action — including covertly entering private homes or intervening in situations involving explosives or weapons. Arrests and open searches will remain the exclusive responsibility of the police. The BND will receive operational powers, including the ability to shut down servers of state-backed hacker groups abroad. The legality of specific measures will be reviewed by a panel of former judges before they are carried out.

The government's justification and the opposition's criticism

The government explains the changes by growing threats from foreign intelligence services, primarily Russia and China, as well as the desire to reduce dependence on allied intelligence. Opposition politicians and legal organizations are against it: they warn that the expanded powers could weaken civil liberties and the principle established in post-war Germany of separating intelligence gathering from police activity. This principle, as noted, reflects the country's experience with the Nazi Gestapo, which combined surveillance with the persecution of political opponents and other groups. The German Bar Association (Deutscher Anwaltverein) warned that granting the intelligence services the right to direct intervention 'endangers the constitutionally enshrined separation between the intelligence services and the police,' and also criticized the weakening of the protection of confidential communication between lawyers and their clients. Green Party deputy Konstantin von Notz had previously warned that the changes could allow intelligence agents to act against citizens without the transparency and legal oversight that are mandatory for the police.