Edeka / Tengelmann: Gabriel and the oddities – tagesschau.de

Sigmar Gabriel has Tengelmann / Edeka made blunders in the merger, damage him and his minister? He denies this – but are present in the file, the WDR, NDR and “Süddeutsche Zeitung”, there are oddities

By Andreas Braun and Katja Riedel, WDR.

For Sigmar Gabriel there were no good weeks, it burned in many places. But rarely it burned so brightly in his house, the Federal Ministry of Economics, like this week: The Higher Regional Court in Dusseldorf ruled a boldest of decisions Gabriels his tenure with harsh words from and accused him of serious errors. It involved a sale of 450 German Kaiser’s Tengelmann stores at the Edeka Group. The Cartel Office prohibited the deal – the minister she allowed my so-called ministerial approval despite concerns against excessive market concentration. And this week he got for what commentators called a slap in the face

The Vice-Chancellor, Minister for Economic Affairs and SPD Chief Gabriel is now heavily in distress -. Legally and politically – because many how internal processes show, is difficult to explain. The files show: Tengelmann owner Karl-Erivan Haub had already urged early and vehemently to an appointment with Gabriel, to convince him of the benefits of a merger with Edeka. Its supermarket chain assume “that you will contact us if you should intend requirements so that we can also carry out the consequences of requirements in mind,” he wrote on August 26, 2015 Gabriel.

competitor Rewe again made an offer, which would have an SPD man actually need like: jobs should get instead are deleted. Unions should get more influence. Haub but so also show comments in the files, had reservations Rewe

talking -. Without protocol

In this complex situation then Gabriel met on 1 December 2015. sequentially with the heads of Edeka and Tengelmann – without the minutes, who could record what was discussed in detail. This circumstance is noticeable and has already made headlines in recent days: Of all of one of the most important discussions in this method, there is no protocol. And also in the files can be found to a word: A note on the Mosa futures lie “not before” the Ministry admitted later. Strange: For years, almost everything is documented and prepared in pages and pages of protocols, making the department head or should know at the Ministry. And now it’s from the Ministry: “A protocol was not necessary.”

In the above date and further discussions with Edeka and Tengelmann in December 2015 Gabriel had informed that permission for merger could take place “only under clear conditions.” The assurance of workers’ rights and jobs was for the Minister “an important public interest reason and an important criterion”. And, moreover, the content of the meeting of December 2015 would result from the preparatory documents to this date, the ministry said.

The fear of voters

There you obviously dealt long ago with another question. What if the merger would not occur? If owner Tengelmann Haub would make his every now and then discreetly positioned threat to smash the branch network and individual parts to send into bankruptcy, right? If Kaiser’s Tengelmann actually would have to dismiss people because Gabriel does not use his power? Gabriel, a Social Democrat, would look bad.

“Minister Gabriel, how much are you worth our jobs?”, Wrote in September 2015, the council of the Tengelmann Fleshwerks Birkenhof Gabriel , “It is time that the SPD again reminded of their origins and their voting block. Then this will be again successful.” It is this question that floated from the beginning to the process. If Gabriel his predecessor Philipp Rösler (FDP) follow the left rebuffed in crisis Schlecker and the fate of the “Schlecker women” hinnahm? When Gabriel pointed repeatedly to the miserable wages of shop assistants and truck drivers in the sequence, then why.

Strange notes

A handwritten note that Gabriel had made to prepare for the talks with Haub and Mosa on December 1, though suggests that the minister still toying with the idea to refuse his permission. But there is also yet another clue: “fallback position: Edeka may degrade a maximum of ten percent of the staff in these five years.” Strange seems this note also because was quite expressed in documents sent Edeka to the ministry that they wanted to get all the jobs, in perspective even expand.

The OLG Dusseldorf has the discussions with the Tengelmann and Edeka bosses reprimanded as “secret talks” – however, Gabriel said, it could be no question. In a note you have may therefore dispense. The bitter irony: Because of the lack of protocol, the Ministry may probably no longer prove beyond doubt what it was at the dates in detail. Not even if Gabriel had had the best of motives.

Here Gabriel and his advisers should have known, on what thin ice they move. Because when the economy minister considered whether the supermarket chains Edeka and Tengelmann should go together against the clear vote of the Bundeskartellamt, have them produce a short appraisal of academic service at least to give an indication in the Bundestag. He had noted in the matter, a political decision of the Minister to leave court in principle not attack. But procedural errors – but be well checked

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