Steinmeier calls German coalition's reforms a move into 'forward play,' defends 1 billion euro palace renovation

A football metaphor for government

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier offered an upbeat assessment of the black-red coalition's recently passed reform package during the ZDF summer interview broadcast on 12 July 2026. Speaking from Villa Hammerschmidt in Bonn, where he temporarily resides while Schloss Bellevue undergoes renovation, Steinmeier reached for a football comparison tied to the ongoing World Cup. "Endlich ist etwas passiert. Es ist aus meiner Sicht auch was Wichtiges passiert," he said, before adding that the coalition had left pure defence behind.

The coalition has just left pure defence and moved into forward play.

Steinmeier suggested the government may have overcome its internal friction. "It could be that we are currently experiencing a new phase in the coalition's politics. Meaning that the self-blockade within the coalition has been lifted, has been dissolved," he stated. The president, whose SPD membership rests during his term, called the measures "a respectable package" and urged social partners to "get on this reform train."

Reform substance over tax relief

When challenged on whether the reforms deliver enough direct financial relief to citizens, Steinmeier pushed back. He framed the package primarily as structural stabilization rather than a stimulus for household budgets.

Structural reforms do not primarily aim to put more money in people's pockets, but first and foremost to stabilize performance systems.

He insisted that patience and persistence would be needed to translate the decisions into legislation, and that without renewed economic growth, politics would "not gain respect or new trust." Steinmeier said he was cautiously optimistic and recommended entering the summer "with a bit more confidence than we were allowed in recent summers."

President as 'reinsurance of democracy'

Steinmeier devoted a significant portion of the interview to defending an activist interpretation of his office against rising populist forces. He said the role of the federal president had changed: two decades ago, the office could float above party politics, but that is no longer adequate.

Today there is a considerable share that votes against the system of democracy. And there the question of non-partisanship is no longer sufficient. You have to take a stand.

He described his office as a "reinsurance of democracy" and refused to disavow earlier remarks, including his statement after coronavirus protests that "the stroll has lost its innocence." Turning to the upcoming Saxony-Anhalt state election in September 2026, Steinmeier cautioned against already assuming an AfD victory, arguing the election campaign had not yet properly begun.

The billion-euro palace question

Interviewer Diana Zimmermann pressed Steinmeier on the renovation costs for Schloss Bellevue, which the ZDF pegged at around one billion euros overall. The Presidential Office's website cites total construction and planning costs of approximately 600 million euros, of which 146 million euros are for the palace itself, with the remainder covering a new technical centre, security installations, and work on the adjacent Presidential Office building erected from 1995 onwards. Steinmeier acknowledged the 250-year-old building's deficiencies, noting that ceiling load-bearing capacity is now compromised.

What am I supposed to say? Schloss Bellevue is 250 years old and in need of renovation.

He argued that without the work, the building could "no longer be used as a representative seat in this form." The interview was conducted at Villa Hammerschmidt, the president's Bonn residence, where he relocated during the Berlin renovation.

Next steps and political calendar

The president called on the coalition to maintain momentum through legislative implementation and to demonstrate that the reforms translate into measurable economic expansion. His remarks land ahead of a politically charged autumn featuring the Saxony-Anhalt state election in September. Steinmeier's framing of his own role as democracy's backstop signals a presidency willing to directly contest anti-system parties, a posture that draws both support and accusations of partisanship from different quarters of German public debate.