Zilkens'
News Blog

Zilkens' News Blog 30 2026

The summer holidays are gradually making their presence felt everywhere. Surprisingly, MPs have more than six weeks’ break from legislative business. One of them has now decided to relinquish his borrowed power for a while by devoting himself to the joys of fatherhood. He is now 46 years old, having spent 24 of those years in the German Bundestag. There are likely to be quite a few more who are contributing to a decent pension scheme. Prior to that, he had completed a banking apprenticeship. There is no record of him ever having held a proper job anywhere – that is, not as a politician. This probably also explains the hubris with which he believed himself to be above the law and the guidelines of his party. He has completely squandered his credibility in public life, and it is good that the Chancellor has finally shown some leadership in this matter. Alongside many others, he too is an example of why it makes perfect sense for parliamentarians – whilst we fully value their parliamentary routine and experience – to return to their normal professions at least every eight years, so as not to lose touch with reality. As long as we are a democracy, we should be able to afford this luxury. Perhaps this would also foster a different culture in how we interact with one another and bring brighter minds to the forefront for the electorate.

In economically difficult times, culture finds it particularly hard to be given sufficient consideration in public budgets. Bureaucracy plays an additional role here, as it gobbles up resources that are actually sorely needed. The German Cultural Council has now put forward proposals that could help make more money available directly for culture whilst, at the same time, scrapping completely nonsensical bureaucratic practices. Reducing bureaucracy has a lot to do with trust; or, to put it another way, excessive bureaucracy is an expression of mistrust. Which brings us back to the various levels of parliaments and supervisory bodies, which, although elected, see their executive bodies increasingly guided not by substance but by opinion polls, in the hope that conforming to public opinion will help them retain power. Put too complicatedly? In short: people try to please everyone without thinking for their own priciples. And it makes absolutely no difference whether we’re talking about Brussels, Berlin, the respective state parliaments, or town and village councils. The way they function and behave is always the same. As long as we live in a country where a pen costing five euros is already regarded as an attempt at bribery, a lack of trust in the reason of those in power – alongside envy and resentment – is the defining characteristic of whoever happens to be in government.

It’s the holidays now, and the World Cup is finally over. We’ll probably have to accept that the respectable nations have no desire to knock Infantino off his pedestal. We could save money here too, were it not for the fact that the nation’s heart is so very attached to World Cup titles. For now, it’s the holidays, from which Stefan Kobel has returned with plenty of new press articles on the art market. We congratulate the new world champions in Spain and otherwise wish you a peaceful week without any low points.

With this in mind, best regards from Stephan Zilkens and the team at Zilkens Fine Art Insurance Brokers in Solothurn and Cologne