| Up to six people may soon enter an alternative to marriage in Germany, a ‘civil union of mutual legal responsibility’ – just one example of how the country’s coalition government has been quietly pushing the boundaries of social change. David Cameron had little to be proud of by the end of his reign as British prime minister. With his legacy of austerity disgraced, and the label of Brexit-enabler firmly stuck to him, Cameron has often named Britain’s social liberalisation, in particular, the introduction of gay marriage, “one of my proudest achievements”. The experience could soon be shared by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his ill-fated ‘traffic-light’ coalition. Attempts to supercharge the country’s green transition and ailing economy appear mostly doomed, with every new initiative sparking infighting and ending up being watered down. But in liberalising the country’s stuffy social policies, still covered in the moralistic dust of Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic government, the ‘traffic light’ is quietly making progress. Germany’s ban on providing information on abortion? Scrapped. The strict immigration code and naturalisation requirements? Liberalised. Self-identification for transgender people and the legalisation of marijuana? Set to be passed. Odd name constructions like ‘Fräulein Müller-Obermann’ will also soon be confined to being the butt of Nazi jokes, as Germans are finally allowed to combine last names freely and unhyphenated, like most of their European peers. The newest addition, which the justice ministry introduced this week, is ‘Verantwortungsgemeinschaften’ (roughly: companionships of shared responsibility). | 