German chancellor Merz pledges government action on climate

Germany's summer in 2026 saw high temperature records broken repeated as the number of heat-related deaths soared. Merz had been silent on the issue until now.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz travelled to Hürtgenwald today, as firefighting in Belgium's High Fens continues. The blaze on the German border is out, but ahead of his visit he faced opposition criticism for 'doing nothing'.