German prosecutors probe Greens leaders over Covid bonus

German prosecutors have opened an investigation into the two leaders of the co-governing Greens, Robert Habeck and Annalena Baerbock, over reported special coronavirus payments, the party said on Wednesday.

Spiegel Online reported the start of the investigation into a possible illegal payments of 1,500 euros to Greens board members in 2020.

The allegations concern the approval of a “coronavirus bonus” given by board members to themselves in 2020, a representative for Berlin prosecutors was quoted by Spiegel Online as saying.

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A Greens party representative said six board members, including Mr Habeck — the economy minister in Germany's new coalition — and Ms Baerbock — now foreign minister — were under investigation.

“The board members concerned and the [party's] main office are co-operating fully with the public prosecutor's office to clarify the facts quickly and comprehensively,” said the representative.

The so-called coronavirus bonus was paid to all employees at the party's main office and to board members, he said, but added that the board members had since re-paid the bonuses.

The special payments were thrown into the spotlight during last year's election campaign when Ms Baerbock, who was running to become chancellor, drew criticism for not declaring them as a source of income.

The Greens share power in a Social Democrat-led, three-way coalition with the pro-business Free Democrats.

The National in Davos

We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.

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Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

Pad Man

Dir: R Balki

Starring: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor, Radhika Apte

Three-and-a-half stars

UAE currency

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Key facilities

Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
Premier League-standard football pitch
400m Olympic running track
NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
600-seat auditorium
Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
Specialist robotics and science laboratories
AR and VR-enabled learning centres
Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills