New ministries in the CDU/CSU: Schnieder and shepherd in focus

Veröffentlicht:

Von:

Patrick Schnieder will be the new Federal Minister of Transport

On Monday, April 28, 2025, the Union confirmed the ministerial positions of a federal government led by Friedrich Merz. In this context, Patrick Schnieder was appointed Federal Minister of Transport. Christian Hirte will work as a parliamentary state secretary in the Federal Ministry of Transport. These appointments are part of a comprehensive realignment of the federal government under the leadership of the CDU/CSU.

Patrick Schnieder, born on May 1, 1968 in Kyllburg, has had a diverse political career. After completing his high school diploma at the St. Matthias-Gymnasium in Gerolstein and basic military service, he studied law at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität in Bonn, where he worked as a lawyer in 1998. He began his political career as mayor of the Arzfeld community from 1999 to 2009, followed by various offices within the CDU. These include the chair of the CDU district association Trier and the posts of the CDU Rhineland-Palatinate. Schnieder was also chairman of the Rhineland-Palatinate regional group in the CDU/CSU parliamentary group and later took over the office of parliamentary managing director.

An important aspect of the government under Merz is the reorganization of the ministries. For example, digitization, which was previously part of the Federal Ministry of Digital and Transport, has now been transferred to an independent Federal Ministry of Digitization and State Modernization. This new ministry is headed by Karsten Wildberger, while Philipp Amthor and Thomas Jarzombek are named as Parliamentary State Secretaries. These restructuring offer opportunities to modernize and optimize digital infrastructure and administration in Germany.

Schnieder's appointment is not only a change in leadership, but also a strategic step in transport policy, which in the next legislative period faces major challenges, such as adapting to climate change, digitization in traffic and improving infrastructure. Schnieder is required to address these challenges and at the same time ensure the mobility of the citizens.