CDU politician Michael Donth becomes triple spokesperson – TMV hopes for new impulses for the taxi and tourism industry

A brief handshake, a smile, a few words of appreciation: It was actually just a routine meeting. But this week, the conversation between Patrick Meinhardt, Chief Executive of the Taxi and Rental Car Association (TMV), and CDU Member of Parliament Michael Donth took on a special significance.

Thrice Committee Spokesperson

Donth remains the rapporteur for the Passenger Transport Act in this legislative period as well. For Meinhardt, this was reason enough to officially congratulate him. The CDU politician from Baden-Württemberg now holds several key positions: He is the spokesperson for his parliamentary group in the Transport Committee, the Tourism Committee—and, in addition, will soon be a member of the Bundestag’s Council of Elders. A rather unusual accumulation of parliamentary responsibility.

"It is a rare constellation for a member of the parliament to become chairman of three committees simultaneously while also being a member of the council of elders," says Meinhardt. The workload is enormous, Donth admits. "But it is also an opportunity. Particularly the combination of tourism and transport policy opens up new perspectives."

For the taxi and rental car association, Donth's expanded role is not just a formal gain. The association sees it as an opportunity to link two policy areas that have often been treated separately: tourism and mobility. Both are, according to Meinhardt, "two sides of the same coin," especially with regard to infrastructure development in rural areas.

The needs of the taxi industry converge with those of the hospitality sector there.

"The services of the hotel industry, gastronomy, and the convention industry are interdependent," says Meinhardt, "they need a functioning mobility infrastructure – especially outside the metropolises."