Politics undergraduates meet Philip Lengsfeld from Germany's CDU

Politics undergraduates spent six days in Berlin during Week 8 of the Spring Term for the Department’s annual trip to Germany’s capital. 

Professor Dan Hough accompanied 17 second-year undergraduates on the trip, where they chatted to MPs about a range of issues related to the government and politics of Germany. 

While in Berlin, the group held talks with Philip Lengsfeld (Christian Democrats), Stefan Liebich (Left Party), Jens Zimmerman (Social Democrats) and the former minister for consumer protection, Renate Kuenast (Greens). 

The group also talked with the Director of Strategy of Germany’s newest party, Rainer Erkens, from the Alternative for Germany (AfD). 

The group fired in questions from all angles – Jon Bowman, for example, grilled Erkens on the AfD’s economic policy, while Eni Mihilli probed Stefan Liebich on the Left Party’s foreign and security policy. 

Before returning to Sussex, the students also visited the fearsome Stasi remand prison in Hohenschönhausen in East Berlin, the Holocaust Memorial and spent a day in the ‘Heldenstadt’ of Leipzig.

Each year, undergraduates enrolled on the Governance of Modern Germany module have the opportunity to enhance their understanding of German politics by visiting the capital, and it is exceptionally popular. 

Olivia Hansell-Foster, who was among the students who visited Berlin this year, said: “The Berlin trip was phenomenal for so many reasons. It was without a doubt one of the best experiences in my time at university. 

“Although I had been to Berlin before, I had a much greater appreciation of the city because of all the recent knowledge I had learned about in the module. Meeting and speaking to the politicians from various parties gave me an insight into how politics in Germany really works.” 

Fellow student Daniel Green added: “The trip to Berlin provided me with a unique chance to understand the different dimensions of German politics in a way that can’t be taught in a classroom. 

“Speaking to German politicians greatly enhanced my ability to comprehend areas of the German political system, as well as explain where major German political parties stand on certain areas.” 

Professor Hough, who leads the trip each year, stressed the importance of learning about Germany. 

He said: “If anyone wants to know how the EU is going to move forward and how the challenges of the Eurocrisis are going to be solved, they’ll have to get a handle of what’s going on in Germany. 

“Germany is not just the EU’s biggest country, it’s the most important political and economic power. 

“That inevitably means that getting a grip on what makes it tick domestically is vital if you’re going to understand how both the EU and Britain’s relationship with it are going to develop.”