Skip to main content

Last chance? Merkel manoeuvres for coalition re-run with Social Democratic party

German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives for pre-talks on forming a new government coalition in Berlin Wednesday. (AP)
German Chancellor Angela Merkel will put her reputation as Europe’s consummate consensus-builder on the line on Wednesday, when she launches a second bid to form a coalition government after weeks of sniping between its would-be partners. Seeking a fourth term in office, Merkel saw her authority weakened in a national election in September, when support for her conservatives was eroded by the far right.
She is now under increasing pressure to reach a deal with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), which also lost ground in the election, but the two sides have bickered over a range of issues, notably immigration and taxation. At a meeting on Wednesday afternoon, Merkel will try to build trust with SPD leader Martin Schulz and the head of Bavaria’s CSU conservatives, Horst Seehofer, by agreeing a structure for talks that are due to start on Sunday and could lead to official coalition negotiations in a few weeks.
Having failed before Christmas to form a coalition with the Greens and pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), Merkel is now leading an interim government with the SPD that is keeping things ticking over in Europe’s biggest economy. Merkel’s CDU/CSU alliance ruled in a ‘grand coalition’ with the SPD from 2013 to 2017 and, with investors fearing a protracted power vacuum that could delay reforms in Germany and the European Union, she is pressing for a re-run of that arrangement. But the SPD has shown reluctance, with some of its members favouring a looser cooperation agreement or supporting a minority government.
‘VERBAL SHENANIGANS’
The two blocs are at odds on issues from healthcare and immigration to Europe and pensions and, if no deal is done, Merkel’s future as chancellor would be thrown into doubt with new elections a distinct prospect. In recent days some conservatives, especially from Bavaria, have stoked tensions by calling for tax cuts for high earners and reductions in benefits for asylum seekers, which the SPD opposes.
“Again verbal shenanigans from the Bavarian CSU,” tweeted one of the SPD’s deputy leaders, Ralf Stegner. “Always the same recipe: humour the lederhosen public. No sense of reality in terms of agreeing with the other parties.” But Seehofer sounded more conciliatory on Wednesday, saying “important days” lay ahead. “We will do everything in these talks to reach sensible agreements,” said the Bavarian before internal party talks on Wednesday morning.
One of Merkel’s priorities will be to establish an atmosphere of trust between the parties, the absence of which led to the collapse of the talks with the Greens and FDP in November. Many within the SPD, which said it would go into opposition after the election in which its support slumped to its lowest level since 1933, fear sharing power with Merkel again will lead voters to punish it further.
To keep the rank and file on board, the SPD leadership has said it will let its members vote on Jan 21 on going ahead with detailed coalition talks after a first exploratory phase has been completed. “I have said that (a coalition deal) must be agreed at the very latest by Easter,” said Seehofer.

 




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Meryl Streep wants to trademark her own name

Meryl Streep has won three Oscars, three Emmys and six Golden Globes during her 40-year long career on stage, screen and television. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP, File) Meryl Streep, the most celebrated actress of her generation, has filed an application to trademark her name. The application was filed with US Patent and Trademark Office on January 22, records show. It requests that the name Meryl Streep be trademarked for “entertainment services,” movie appearances, speaking engagements and autographs. Streep, 68, last week extended her record to 21 Academy Award nominations, this time for her role in “The Post.” She has won three Oscars, three Emmys and six Golden Globes during her 40-year long career on stage, screen and television. It is not clear why Streep would file a trademark application at this stage in her career and her attorney and publicist did not return a request for comment on Monday. Many celebrities trademark their names or catch phrases to pro...
Post a Comment
Read more

Beijing’s struggle against pollution will be tough, take time: Mayor

Beijing’s battle against air pollution will take time and be very tough to win despite recent improvements, the acting mayor of China’s capital said on Wednesday. The city has been fighting to clean its notoriously smoggy air through steps such as pushing households and factories to switch away from coal to cleaner fuels like natural gas. “Further improvement in air quality (will be) extremely difficult,” acting mayor of Beijing, Chen Jining, said in a statement released during the city’s congress meeting. The central government’s intense focus on air quality means many local officials’ careers are linked to the success of efforts to tackle smog, making it unusual to speak candidly about the challenges of meeting tough targets. Beijing has chalked up a short-term success by cutting the annual average level of breathable particulate matter (PM 2.5) to 58 micrograms per cubic metre in 2017, beating a target set by the State Council in 2012. However, the city is still some way f...
Post a Comment
Read more

Under fire, Steve Bannon backs off explosive comments about Donald Trump’s son

Bannon, ousted from the White House in August, was quoted in “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House,” by journalist Michael Wolff, as saying a June 2016 meeting with a group of Russians attended by Donald Trump Jr. and his father’s top campaign officials was “treasonous” and “unpatriotic.” (Photo: Reuters) President Donald Trump’s former strategist Steve Bannon on Sunday backed away from derogatory comments ascribed to him about Trump’s son in a new book that sparked White House outrage and could threaten Bannon’s influence as a would-be conservative power broker. Bannon, ousted from the White House in August, was quoted in “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House,” by journalist Michael Wolff, as saying a June 2016 meeting with a group of Russians attended by Donald Trump Jr. and his father’s top campaign officials was “treasonous” and “unpatriotic.” The president responded by saying Bannon had lost his mind, and the White House suggested the hard-right news site...
Post a Comment
Read more