Talk: German Coalition - Crisis of Confidence | Quadriga

The investigation of a former member of parliament for possible possession of child pornography has plunged Chancellor Merkel's government into a deep crisis. A cabinet minister has resigned, and could be prosecuted for passing on information that should have remained secret. Trust within the coalition has been damaged. And there are fears the rule of law in Germany has been undermined. What is clear is that Angela Merkel's government has been severely damaged by all this. But will people's trust in institutions and the rule of law recover after such a messy scandal?

Guests:

Johannes Leithäuser - is a historian, political scientist and an economist. As a student, he freelanced for a number of newspapers, before eventually taking a job with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

Anthony Paterson - He began his career as a journalist in London and has worked as a foreign correspondent from, Paris, Bonn, Warsaw, Vienna and Berlin. He is now the Berlin correspondent for the London daily newspaper The Independent.

Christiane Meier - began her career in journalism in northern Germany working for several local broadcasters. She later made the move to Bonn before crossing the Atlantic in 2000 to take up a post with the German public channel "ARD", at its Washington bureau. She is now based in Berlin where she is responsible for foreign affairs, the chancellor, the Greens as well as environmental issues.