What British bureaucrats can learn from German efficiency

We have often heard over the past weeks how Germany’s impressive testing capacity has proven central to combating the coronavirus at such speed. But equally impressive is the speed at which its state and federal governments have reacted financially to save the economy. Like some of the UK’s support schemes, Germany has provided various aid packages or Soforthilfe to businesses large and small. Unlike the UK, however, Germany has already managed to pay out billions of euros to those in need.

For the self-employed and small businesses with up to ten workers, this has essentially meant free money arriving in their bank accounts within 24 hours of applying, for which they complete only a short online form with their name and tax ID with hardly any further checks. Here in Berlin, that means the delivery of €5,000 (£4,400) – no questions asked – and up to anywhere between €9,000 to €15,000 (£7,900 to £13,200) for anyone with ongoing business costs.