Freie Universität Berlin to examine family minister’s doctorate

The Freie Universität Berlin is investigating the doctoral thesis of Franziska Giffey, minister for family affairs, over allegations of plagiarism.

A spokesperson for the university confirmed that Giffey had asked the institution to formally evaluate her PhD. The request was made on 7 February, in the wake of allegations levelled by the plagiarism testing site Vroniplag, stating that parts of the thesis may have been taken from other works without proper attribution.

The spokesperson said the university would begin the investigation “soon”, but did not say when this is expected to be completed.