Tourism association in chaos: Red-Red government under pressure!

Tourism association in chaos: Red-Red government under pressure!

Trouble in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania's tourism industry: For weeks, the state tourism association has been the focus of investigations and internal conflicts that are fueled by suspicions of subsidy fraud. The red-red state government is confronted with growing discontent because its dealings with the association are perceived as inadequate.

The board of the state tourism association has called for a quick decision on the future of the association after Economics Minister Wolfgang Blank (independent) announced the transformation of the association into a new state company more than two months ago. This measure is intended to secure the jobs of more than 40 employees at the headquarters in Rostock, which is of vital importance given the current uncertainties.

Subsidy fraud and internal challenges

The situation worsened after investigations revealed irregularities in the billing of funding. Officials from the State Criminal Police Office searched the offices of the State Tourism Association in Rostock on the orders of the Schwerin public prosecutor's office in order to secure evidence. The Ministry of Economic Affairs filed a complaint in February after discovering these irregularities, which confirmed the initial suspicion, as the Schwerin public prosecutor's office confirmed.

The association, which is financed almost exclusively from state funds, says it receives almost six million euros per year. This funding was initially blocked due to a lack of reliability, but has since been partially paid out again. In April, the stopped funding was temporarily released to avert the association's insolvency. Nevertheless, the situation remains tense: the board, led by State Parliament President Birgit Hesse (SPD), sees the conversion as stalled and is calling for urgent action from the ministry to secure financing.

Internal disputes and political reactions

Internal coordination in the state government is difficult, which is made worse by the fact that the structural commission to reorganize the association has not yet met. Hesse has even positioned himself against his own SPD-led state government, which is further fueling the already controversial debates within the SPD faction. The position of state tourism officer remains vacant, creating additional uncertainty.

Although the ministry has not yet responded to the association's various criticisms, the discussion about the future of the state tourism association and its financial stability remains a central issue in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania's state politics. Pressure is growing on the government to act quickly to stabilize the association and regain the industry's trust.

The situation illustrates how fragile the organizational and financial structures within the country's tourism facilities are and how much politicians are required to find quick and targeted solutions in order to avoid the state tourism association's insolvency. For the more than 40 employees and all the tourism players in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the next few months will be dominated by reforms and transition strategies.

More details on this topic are provided NDR, while MOPO reported on the background to the investigation and the financial irregularities.