Berlin Culture Senator Leaves Job After Giving Money Wrongly

Apr 24, 2026, 14:12

Introduction

Sarah Wedl-Wilson was Berlin's culture senator. She left her job. An audit found that she gave €2.6 million to projects without following the rules. The mayor accepted her resignation.

Main Body

The audit said the process was illegal. The culture department did not check the projects well. They did not have good rules for giving the money. Wedl-Wilson gave the money after politicians from the CDU party pushed her. She fired her assistant. Opposition parties said two CDU politicians had bad influence. The politicians said they did nothing wrong. A committee is looking into this. One group got €390,000. Its director called a rich man a bad name. She also compared a newspaper to a Nazi paper. A researcher for the group said he worked for a famous university. He did not. The director said the criticism was political. The audit only looked at the rules for giving money. It did not look at the work of the projects. Now the groups may have to pay back the money.

Conclusion

This is a big problem for Berlin's government before the election in September. It shows problems with how politicians and rules work together when giving public money for important programs.

Vocabulary Learning

check (v.)
verify / to look at something to make sure it is correct檢查
Example:The culture department did not check the projects well.
job (n.)
position / the work that someone does to earn money工作
Example:She had an important job in Berlin's government.
leave (v.)
quit / to stop working for an organization離開（工作）
Example:Sarah Wedl-Wilson left her job after the audit.
money (n.)
cash / what you use to buy things錢
Example:The audit found she gave money without following rules.
rules (n.)
regulations / instructions that tell you what you can or cannot do規則
Example:The department did not have good rules for giving money.

Sentence Learning

Wedl-Wilson gave the money after politicians from the CDU party pushed her.
Time Marker: After shows the sequence of events. It tells when she gave the money - after the politicians pushed her.時間標記：After 表示事件順序。它說明她何時給了錢——在政客推動她之後。
Now the groups may have to pay back the money.
Time Marker: Now indicates the present time. It shows that the situation is current.時間標記：Now 表示現在的時間。它顯示情況是當前的。
She also compared a newspaper to a Nazi paper.
Addition: Also adds another action to the previous one. It connects similar ideas.附加連接詞：Also 將另一個動作添加到前一個動作。它連接相似的想法。
This is a big problem for Berlin's government before the election in September.
Time Marker: Before shows time order. 'In September' is a prepositional phrase giving specific time.時間標記：Before 顯示時間順序。'在九月'是介詞短語，提供具體時間。
An audit found that she gave €2.6 million to projects without following the rules.
Prepositional Phrase: 'Without following the rules' is a prepositional phrase that describes the manner of giving money. It shows a lack of proper procedure.介詞短語：'Without following the rules' 是介詞短語，描述給錢的方式。它顯示缺乏正當程序。