Responsibilities
It is essential for the government to receive specialist advice on a regular basis, especially because it is not possible to adequately address future challenges without a solid foundation in academic research. The Advisory Board to the Federal Ministry of Finance is an expert body that has repeatedly provided valuable ideas and proposals for Germany’s economic and fiscal policies over the last 75 years.
In its search for rational solutions, the Advisory Board sees itself as the academic “conscience” of the government – not least because of its independence, which is stipulated in its statutes. It has always been part of the board’s role, and still is today, to challenge policy-makers.
The papers produced by the Advisory Board cover a very wide range of issues, including German reunification, the European integration process, tax reform and prospects for budgetary consolidation, to name just a few examples. Against the backdrop of German and European unification, the Advisory Board developed important guidelines and reform proposals relating to the equalisation of Länder finances in Germany as well as the significance of the Maastricht criteria for federal and Länder debt limits.
In 2024, the Advisory Board to the Federal Ministry of Finance celebrated the 75th anniversary of its founding. The board advises the German finance minister in an independent capacity, with its members serving on a voluntary basis. It has a free hand when it comes to selecting the issues to focus on.
Members
Current members of the Advisory Board
| Prof Jörg Rocholl, PhD (chairman) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Prof Dr Alfons Weichenrieder (vice-chairman) | |||
| Prof Klaus Adam, PhD | Prof Dr Bernd Friedrich Huber | Prof Dr Helga Pollak | Prof Dr Marcel Thum |
| Prof Dr Thiess Büttner | Prof Dr Martin Jacob | Prof Dr Wolfram F. Richter | Prof Dr Christian Waldhoff |
| Prof Dr Lars P. Feld | Prof Dr Kai A. Konrad | Prof Dr Nadine Riedel | Prof Dr Dietmar Wellisch |
| Prof Dr Clemens Fuest | Prof Dr Jan Pieter Krahnen | Prof Dr Ronnie Schöb | Prof Volker Wieland, PhD |
| Prof Dr Klaus Dirk Henke | Prof Dr Hanno Kube | Prof Dr Ulrich Schreiber | Prof Dr Berthold Wigger |
| Prof Dr Joachim Hennrichs | Prof Dr Dominika Langenmayr | Prof Dr Christoph Spengel | |
| Prof Dr Johanna Hey | Prof Dr Andreas Peichl | Prof Dr Christoph Trebesch | |
Contact:
beirat@bmf.bund.de
Expert opinions and reports
All of the advisory board’s expert opinions and reports can be found on our German page.