The Karlsruhe court has done its duty. A life sentence for the man who drove a car into a crowded Christmas market in Berlin, killing 12 and injuring 56. The perpetrator, a 29-year-old German-Tunisian, will likely spend the rest of his days in a cell.
But while German justice has moved swiftly, let's not pretend the UK's terror legislation is anything but the gold standard. Our Prevent strategy, TPIMs, and the sheer scope of Schedule 7 powers make the German approach look like a gentle tap on the wrist. The City will note that markets barely flickered at the news.
Investors have priced in the reality that Western democracies will inevitably face such threats. The real concern remains the fiscal drag from security spending, not the judicial outcome. Britain's terror laws, tightened after the 2019 London Bridge attack, are the most robust in Europe.
This verdict changes nothing on that front. The bottom line: a life sentence for one man does not alter the risk calculus for capital markets. What matters is the yield curve and the cost of policing.
That is where the true price of terror is paid.
