Multiculturalism still a bad idea

German opposition leader Angela Merkel in 2004:

"[T]he idea of a multicultural society cannot succeed. It is prone to failure from the start. Multiculturalism is not integration."

Chancellor Merkel on Saturday:

"And of course, the approach [to build] a multicultural [society] and to live side-by-side and to enjoy each other... has failed, utterly failed."

In her speech, the chancellor specifically referred to recent comments by German President Christian Wulff who said that Islam was "part of Germany" like Christianity and Judaism.

While acknowledging that this was the case, Mrs Merkel stressed that immigrants living in Germany needed to do more to integrate, including learning to speak German.

"Anyone who does not immediately speak German", she said, "is not welcome".

Raus! Macht schnell!