, Columnist
Germany Needs Some of Its Own Medicine
What Merkel preached abroad, she largely avoided at home.
German leadership in Europe should start at home.
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This autumn, a newly elected European government will need to prove its reformist credentials to convince partners to press ahead with its plans for reforming the euro zone.
While most will see this assertion as applying to France, it could equally refer to Germany. Angela Merkel, who is on course to win a fourth term as Chancellor, has been much better at asking that other euro zone countries become more competitive than at transforming Germany's economy. If Berlin is to take the currency union into the next phase of the process of integration, its leadership must start at home.