German parties sign coalition deal for new Scholz government
Germany’s incoming governing parties have signed their agreement for what they portray as a progressive coalition, a day before Olaf Scholz is due to succeed longtime leader Angela Merkel as chancellor
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Germany's incoming governing parties signed their agreement for what they portray as a progressive coalition on Tuesday, a day before Olaf Scholz is due to succeed longtime leader Angela Merkel as chancellor.
The agreement hammered out last month between Scholz's center-left Social Democrats the environmentalist Greens and the pro-business Free Democrats received strong backing over recent days from the three parties' members. That has cleared the way for Scholz to be elected on Wednesday in parliament, where the coalition — which has never yet been tried in a national government — has a solid majority.
The 177-page coalition agreement is titled “Venture More Progress” — a theme that the incoming government's leaders hammered home at a signing ceremony at Berlin s Futurium museum.
Efforts to curb climate change are a top priority for the new government, particularly the Greens. Other priorities include modernizing Europe’s biggest economy and introducing more liberal social policies. Above all, though, the government faces the immediate task of pushing down near-record coronavirus infection rates.
“We said that we want to venture more progress, and from this week on we want to work on progress,” said Christian Lindner, the incoming finance minister and the Free Democrats' leader. “We have no illusions — we face great challenges.”
The agreement between three parties that had significant differences before Germany's September election was reached relatively quickly and, at least in public, in unexpected harmony.
“If the good cooperation that worked while we were forming the government continues to work, it will be a very, very good time for the tasks that lie ahead of us,” Scholz said. He acknowledged that dealing with the pandemic “will demand all our strength and energy.”
Merkel, who has been chancellor for 16 years, did not seek a fifth term. Her center-right Union bloc is going into opposition after its election defeat.
___
Follow AP’s coverage of Germany’s transition to a new government at https://apnews.com/hub/germany-election.