A court in Hamburg confirmed a gag order on April 3 that reins in a German politician’s criticism of the former chancellor, Gerhard Schröder, for taking a lucrative job as head

of a Russian-led gas pipeline project. Here is what the politician, Guido Westerwelle, leader of the Free Democrats, is no longer permitted to say: Schröder cut a deal on the project with the Russian gas giant Gazprom while he was the chancellor and then went on to work for Gazprom immediately on leaving office.

It is appalling that Schröder actually believes he can kill the furore over his behaviour with a gag order. Back in 2002, he got a court to order a news agency not to repeat the suggestion that he dyed his hair, thus ensuring that everybody in Germany now believes he does. What is surprising, and sad, is that he seems not to see why it was utterly shameless to agree with Putin to build the pipeline, and then accept a job to head it.

It is a breach of trust for a former elected official to make money off projects that he began. The conflict of interest is far more grievous when it applies to a former head of government.

It is not for us to suggest that Westerwelle defy the law, but the rest of Germany is not similarly gagged. Germans should hammer the point home until Schröder and other greedy politici-ans get it.