Rot-Gruen’s welfare reforms remained unpopular and unemployment stubbornly high. Schroeder ploughed on with his so-called Agenda 2010, which was designed to make Germany economically competitive by 2010. This proposal included the infamous Hartz reforms, named after the CEO of Volkswagen, Peter Hartz, who advised the government. According to Hartz, Germany’s relatively generous unemployment benefits had … Continue reading The Outsider (Part V): ‘The Road to Groko (2002-2005)’