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We’re back with a new series of Germany in Focus, a weekly podcast about life, talking points and news in Germany. 

In the latest episode, host Rachel Loxton is joined by journalists Imogen Goodman and Aaron Burnett, and German teacher at the Goethe Institut Birgit Schneider. 

We talk about why the German Defence Minister has stepped down – and who her replacement is. 

• German Defence Minister quits as pressure grows for Ukraine aid

New Year’s Eve was quite a few weeks ago now, but the riots and attacks on emergency workers have sparked a major debate in Germany. We look at how it’s brought immigration and racism issues into the spotlight, as well as questions about whether the private use of fireworks should be scaled back. 

• How New Year’s Eve fireworks chaos sparked a racism debate

Next we bring you up to date with some great new international train routes from Germany.

• The new international train routes you can take from Germany this year
• How travelling by train between Berlin and the UK will get easier in 2023

We give an update on changes to some of the Covid mask wearing rules in Germany. 

We talk about the draft law for German citizenship reform, which will see many hurdles relaxed, including allowing people to hold multiple nationalities. Plus Aaron gives an update on the expected timeline of the process. 

• KEY POINTS: What’s in Germany’s draft law on dual citizenship?
• TIMELINE: What happens next with Germany’s plans to allow dual citizenship?

In this episode we focus on the German language requirements likely needed in the future for people applying to become German.

• What we know so far about the planned language requirements for German citizenship

German teacher Birgit Schneider also goes into a bit more detail about the language levels and gives her tips for passing the exams. 

• How hard is the C1 language test for Germany’s upcoming citizenship reform?

Lastly, we get into some of the ways Germans beat the winter blues because January really is a tough month.

• The one way to beat the January blues in each German state
• How to plan a budget skiing holiday in Germany

We hope you’re enjoying the Germany in Focus podcast. Please let us know if you found it helpful or if you have any feedback by emailing [email protected]. And don’t forget to share it, leave a comment or give us a rating on whichever platform you listen on. Thank you for your support!