Madame Chancellor,

Madame Vice-President of the Hamburg Parliament,

Members of the Diplomatic and Consular Corps,

Honorary Citizens of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

I would like to extend the warmest of welcomes to all of you to what was originally known as the Convivium of an Honourable Council” the world’s oldest still celebrated and most traditional banquet. 

 

It is an honour for the City of Hamburg to be the host to two globally active politicians who apply their political weight at every given moment in the pursuit of democracy, peace and prosperity:

 

As guests of honour of the Matthiae-Mahl 2016, permit me to extend a special welcome to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, David Cameron, and the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Angela Merkel. 

 

The Matthiae-Mahl tradition has existed since 1356, and it is customary for us to invite guests from abroad whom we know to be friends of Hamburg. This time we are almost entre nous.” After all, Angela Merkel was born in Hamburg. And David Cameron ought to feel very much at home here, as we like to think that  there is no other city in Germany that is as British as Hamburg. 

 

 

Part of our name  Hanseatic” which traces back to the Hanseatic League - is definitely old school” and very British.” It was King Henry III who granted Hamburg merchants the right to conduct business in London. That was in 1266. It is in the documents drawn up for this protective association that the term Hanse” is first mentioned. The Hanseatic League became the first successful European economic community. In the 15th century, the energetic people of Hamburg even purchased property on the Thames, called the Stahlhof, or Steelyard. The economically and fiscally lucrative collaboration between the Hanseatic League and the Crown functioned well for over 100 years. 

 

As is customary for the Matthiae-Mahl, the festive banquet is decorated with silver treasures. The most valuable piece, the gold-plated Holbein Bowl” is a gift presented by King Edward VII in the summer of 1904. As the result of a diplomatic initiative of Albert Ballin, the British King not only visited the German Kaiser in Kiel, but also the Hamburg Senate. But neither this royal visit nor numerous other diplomatic initiatives undertaken by British-German economic experts could convince Germany to solve the growing frictions in Europe through negotiations. The results are well known.

 

Peaceful cooperation among the peoples of Europe is the most important perspective for our continent. Conceived, developed and stabilised by great Europeans from Great Britain, France and Germany, including some very influential Hamburg natives, such as Helmut Schmidt, the European Union is the realisation of this goal. 

 

As early as 1946, Churchill predicted that there would be no limit to the happiness, to the prosperity and glory” of a united Europe, in his speech on Europe in Zurich. And he was right. Four of the G7 nations are members of the European Union, and the less prosperous countries also profit enormously from the Single Market. 

 

But the greatest achievement is that which is experienced by politicians firsthand in meetings lasting for nights on end, and which citizens read about repeatedly in their newspapers: The necessity of negotiating with one another. 

 

Admittedly, the preamble to the Maastricht Treaty does not refer to disputes, but at times this is the form in which we become closer. The history of the European Union is really the history of managing crises and solving problems. The partners of the Treaties of Rome gave themselves twelve years to create the common market. Literally every single day of this time period was needed. Several very serious crises threatened our collaboration. And back then, there were only six countries that had to come to an agreement with one another. It took another eight years until Great Britain joined the European Community. The story reads like a thriller, and we all know how good British thrillers are. 

 

One of the enormous problem-solving abilities of Europe is that the individual characteristics of her nations are always taken into consideration. German reunification could have triggered a crisis in the alliance. But our European neighbours reacted with trust, generous support and openness. 

 

The ability of enlightened citizen to understand and respect the perspective of others, and to seek joint solutions, has become manifest in the institution of the European Union.

 

Europe has been transformed from a continent of wars to a continent of opportunities. The whole world knows this. Millions of books, thousands of films, and innumerable European industrial products are proof of the success of the European way of life. This makes Europe attractive, of course. Go West” was what many millions of Germans, Austrians, Hungarians, Poles and Irishmen said at the turn of the 20th century and then emigrated to the U.S. Today, along with this old American dream, there is also a new European dream. Europe has become a continent of immigration. 

 

 

The crisis regions present a sharp contrast to the peaceful and prosperous European continent. The war in Syria and Iraq is living proof of this reality every day in a horrific way.

 

Millions of people are fleeing from death, violence and persecution, and many of them are fleeing to Europe. 

 

For quite some time, the border states Spain, Italy and Greece took responsibility for the majority of these refugees, and Germany along with other Europea states counted on this. Now Europe has been divided into transit states and destination states, and Austria, Sweden and Germany are shouldering a huge weight. The joint regulations shaped by the European Union for dealing with immigration and asylum must be reformed. 

 

Here we can build on the experiences gleaned from 60 years of European integration. We know: There is no good European policy that is based solely on solutions for single nation states. 

 

 

In August 1960, four young British men from Liverpool came to Hamburg to make music. They stood on stage here for a total of 503 hoursbefore three months later, George Harrison and Paul McCartney were expelled due to some technicalities. For the Beatles, there stay in Hmaburg was a game changer. They left Hamburg with a new haircut and international stage experience, returned to Liverpool, and became international stars. 

 

No British citizens are expelled from Hamburg anymore, nor are any other EU citizens who work here. We support the mobility of apprentices, students and talents. This freedom of movement is one of the greatest rights enjoyed by citizens of Europe. 

 

Everywhere in Europe, companies profit from qualified employees from other countries. 200 million workers can take advantage of the right to freedom of movement. We should be honest and admit that not only the desired skilled workers come, but also the unemployed and families who need support. This has created problems in many places. It is clear that the EU is not yet sufficiently prepared for the consequences of this freedom of movement. 

 

David Cameron has stated this very clearly  for the UK.But Denmark, Sweden and Germany are also worried that this part of immigration could overburden their welfare states.

 

Our guest of honour, David Cameron, has made a suggestion. It stipulates that employees from other member states would basically only be eligible for so-called in-work benefits” after a waiting period of four years. Since problems are developing in Germany that are similar to those in Great Britain, I have made a suggestion namely that social benefits received by EU citizens outside of their country of origin should be linked to work they have performed. Their right to unemployment benefits would only be in effect in the country to which they emigrate if they have worked full-time for a year and received at least a minimum wage . 

 

As President of the European Council, Donald Tusk has suggested an emergency brake” for member states that are particularly affected by immigration and the  claim to their social security systems. Next Friday, this will be discussed by the Heads of State and Government in Brussels. A solution to this problem should be possible. We hope so. 

 

 

In an essay on international law, Immanuel Kant spoke of the antagonism of man’s asocial sociability.” This causes people to associate with others, but also to quarrel, because other people tend not to do what you would like them to do. 

 

Asocial sociability is always at the table in Europe when we are discussing reforms. Europe needs reforms: It needs to become more democratic, more flexible, and at the same time hand back authority to the regions. For these reforms and for a strong Europe, we need the United Kingdom. 

 

Great Britain cannot be replaced in foreign and security politics. The ability of the EU to stand on its own feet in the small circle of global powers depends on an effective foreign policy. This can only be accomplished with the involvement of the two European nations, Great Britain and France, whose experience with global politics is reflected in their position as permanent members of the UN Security Council. 

 

The situation is similar in economic matters. Europe needs global weightiness. We cannot and do not want to do without London.

 

Dear David Cameron, your country has been very instrumental in ensuring that the European Union could continue to develop. Let me just mention German reunification and the eastward expansion of the EU. 

 

Great Britain is one of the stable traditional democracies in Europe. It was the British who formulated the principles that serve as the intellectual foundations of modern Europe. Great Britain is an open society, a model for Europe. It has always resisted the extreme acts of violence and misanthropic temptations of European fascism. Up to the present day, there is hardly any other community that has succeeded, as has the United Kingdom, in uniting citizens from many different countries, varied cultures and ethnicities, in a parliamentary democracy. 

 

Becoming more British would be very good for Europe. 

 

 

What is needed now is the pragmatism, the readiness to compromise, and the courage of the British citizens. To phrase it in terms of an important confrontation between Germany and England, the one in Wembley in 1966: The game is on, the ball is flying toward the goal. 

 

This time the British will decide alone what happens: Whether the ball is in or not. 

 

And this time we all hope the decision will be: in!

 

Many thanks!