German ex-finance minister kills film producer’s dog with car

Germany’s former finance minister ran over and killed a dog belonging to a famous film producer.

Christian Lindner, who leads Germany’s flagging Free Democratic Party, was leaving an Italian restaurant in Berlin behind the wheel of his car when he hit the dog, a Norfolk Terrier, according to German newspaper Bild.

The canine was not leashed and belonged to German film producer Wolf Bauer. Lindner was visibly upset and tried to get help for the injured pooch, witnesses told Bild, which is owned by Axel Springer, POLITICO’s parent company.

Reached for comment by Bild, Lindner confirmed the accident and said he did not know “the dog had since passed away.”

“The dog owner and I didn’t exchange contact information, and he didn’t introduce himself to me,” Lindner said. “I’m very sorry the dog died.”

Lindner was finance minister in former Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s coalition government until he was sacked last November over a budget dispute, a move that effectively triggered snap elections.

During his tenure, Lindner — a proud petrolhead who once claimed his first word was “car” — strongly advocated for Germany’s automobile industry, opposing a European Commission proposal to wean the continent off fossil fuel-powered cars.

He owns a Porsche — which he was not driving at the time of the accident — and at one point came under scrutiny over his text messages with the automaker’s boss, Oliver Blume.