Germany’s coalition government led by Olaf Scholz held a two-day retreat on the outskirts of Berlin this week in search of political unity, but the coexistence between the parties that make it up is anything but harmonious.
“We’ve had a very successful track record this year and last year,” Scholz told reporters at the end of the meeting., but political analysts noted that even the chancellor himself, with an almost funerary expression, does not really believe in this success, and certainly not the German people either, given the opinion polls, which reveal enormous dissatisfaction with the government, whose “record” is being applauded . only by 19% of the respondents.
The so-called ‘traffic light coalition’ – Germany’s first multi-party national coalition in decades – which succeeded Angela Merkel’s 16-year-old (CDU, centre-right) coalition, is made up of the Socialists from the SPD, Scholz, the Greens and the Liberals from the FDP, and since taking office in December 2021, the foreseeable issues of understanding, especially between Greens and Liberals, with very different agendas, have become deeper and more public.
In an already difficult context, of high inflation, an almost stagnant economy, with the war in Ukraine – the issue of German military aid to the Ukrainians is a divisive issue in German society – and the increase in immigration, The coalition parties, especially Verdes and FDP, disagree on almost the entire political agenda of the government, starting with economic policy, but also on energy, environment and defense issues, among others, and there are constant attacks and mutual accusations in the government. ‘public square’.
Tension is particularly evident between FDP leader and finance minister Christian Lindner and the environmentalists, and any attempt by the government to project a new image of unity after the summer was quickly quashed at the first post-holiday meeting, held on August 16 last year.
On this occasion Greens’ Families Minister Lisa Paus blocked a Liberals’ plan for corporate tax cuts after trying unsuccessfully in recent months to get the ‘green light’ from the Treasury Secretary for a massive increase in child support funding and child benefit reform.
Olaf Scholz himself can no longer hide his frustration at the public disagreements between his coalition partners, having admitted this week that he can only warn against it.
“We need to focus more on highlighting the successes of the government’s work and having the necessary internal discussions about our plans.” warned the chancellor.
However, with two years left in office, the Scholz government has little reason to be optimistic about the future, and the scenario of an eventual re-election in 2025 already seems a mirage given the polls.
According to an opinion poll published by the public broadcaster ARD on Thursday, only 19% of Germans say they are satisfied or very satisfied with Scholz’s government, which is another two percentage point drop compared to the previous month, and the Chancellor himself is the least. popular figure in government, with a personal approval rating of just 26%.
The most recent polls penalize the three parties in the coalition: currently the SPD collects only 18% of voting intentions, trailing not only the CDU with 26%, but also the far-right AfD (Alternative for Germany) party, with 21%. %. In fourth place are the Greens, at 14%, and the FDP Liberals do not exceed 07%.
The polls are not only disheartening for the government, but also threaten to fuel the conflict even further, because with the three sides at a ‘low’ level, there will be a temptation to try to please the respective bases more, say analysts who are unanimous in their forecasts. that this traffic light coalition will hardly get through the ‘red light’.
Source: DN
