Hamburg votes to screen all public sector job applicants for constitutional loyalty, reviving Cold War-era fears

The decision

On Wednesday, the Hamburg Bürgerschaft approved a regulation that will require a mandatory check with the state's Verfassungsschutz for every person applying for a position in the public service. The vote was 85 in favour and 25 against, with backing from the ruling SPD and Greens as well as the opposition CDU. A supplementary motion, also passed, forces the domestic intelligence agency to share not only whether it holds information on a candidate's potential anti-constitutional activities but also the content of that information.

“Our democratic state cannot exist if those who work for it do not stand firmly on the ground of the constitution.”

Supporters argued that the state must prevent extremists from obtaining positions of trust. Innensenator Andy Grote (SPD) pointed to roughly 50 cases in recent years where individuals with extremist leanings, especially from Islamist circles and often in schools, were discovered only after they had already been hired.

How the check works

The new rule extends an existing practice that already applies to applicants for police and security authorities, as well as to those seeking firearms licences or accreditation at certain events. Now, it will cover all public service roles, from teachers and caretakers to animal keepers. The Verfassungsschutz will be queried before an initial appointment, before conferring lifetime civil servant status, and before any transfer into particularly sensitive areas. Legal safeguards include a right of access to the information for the candidate, a mandatory hearing before a rejection, and the final hiring decision resting with the employing authority, not the intelligence service.

“We must identify enemies of the constitution in public service, and the Verfassungsschutz query is the right way to protect us all.”

Historical shadows

The measure has drawn immediate comparisons to the 1972 Extremistenbeschluss adopted under Chancellor Willy Brandt (SPD). That decree led to widespread screening of public sector workers, especially teachers, and resulted in de facto professional bans that lasted into the 1980s, often on the basis of mere suspicion. Grote insisted the new regulation is different, with full legal protection and judicial review. "The relevant intelligence must be transparent and court-proof," he said.

Opposition and protest

The Left party and the AfD voted against the bill. Deniz Çelik, interior spokesperson for the Left, called the rule a political general suspicion against applicants. "Whoever seriously wants to protect democracy does not create a climate of intimidation and repression," he said, adding that the Verfassungsschutz would effectively become "the political bouncer of the public service." The AfD's Dirk Nockemann also voiced strong opposition. Trade unions, the Jusos, the Green Youth, and the Hamburg student chamber had all protested the measure, warning that it could deter socially engaged young people from applying. A weekend demonstration in Hamburg drew further criticism. The DGB's Olaf Schwede raised the scenario that if a state interior ministry were led by a party classified as right-wing extremist, such as the AfD in Saxony-Anhalt, it could feed information into the central register and influence hiring elsewhere.

Legal expert Sarah Geiger clarified that the rule does not prohibit civil servants from criticising the state, as long as it stays within the boundaries of the constitution. Protests remain explicitly allowed.