Germany’s government was plunged into a row on Wednesday after the European People’s Party (EPP) voted with right-wing factions in the European Parliament to scale back key requirements in the EU supply-chain rules, arguing they place excessive burdens on European businesses. The move has triggered sharp criticism from across Berlin, including from Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and Labor Minister Bärbel Bas (SPD).
The uproar follows a vote that broke with long-standing practice in Brussels, in which the European Parliament ended years of cooperation between the centre-left and centre-right to freeze out right-wing forces.
The EPP group joined forces with the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) and the Patriots for Europe (PfE) to pass a bill cutting red tape on European competitiveness.
The supply chain law, introduced a year ago, originally required companies with over 1,000 employees and an annual turnover of €450 million to address human rights abuses and environmental harm in their supply chains. The European Parliament has now voted to raise the threshold, limiting the rules to firms with at least 5,000 employees and €1.5 billion in annual turnover.
Chancellor Merz distanced himself from his own party’s members, issuing unusually sharp criticism. He urged CDU/CSU lawmakers in Brussels to pursue cooperation with Social Democrats and Liberals rather than relying on the Right.
“I assume that in this final vote on the EU supply chain directive in the European Parliament, the majority I always like to see will emerge—namely, a majority of the EPP, the Social Democrats, and the Liberals,” said Merz—a statement later proven incorrect.
Parliamentary records show the initiative only secured a majority thanks to parties pushing for a more business-friendly regulatory approach, including groups aligned with Hungary’s Viktor Orbán and France’s Marine Le Pen.
Labor Minister Bärbel Bas went even further, accusing EPP leader Manfred Weber of deliberately avoiding compromise. She called the vote a “fatal signal,” warning that conservatives should not partner with right-wing groups, regardless of shared goals on economic regulation.
Weber rejected all accusations, insisting the EPP had “never shaken hands with any right-wing populist” and arguing that the AfD’s support had no impact on the outcome. He framed the reform as “the first major package of deregulation.”
