Thursday, December 9th, 2021
Corona consultations and travel
This is what the first working day of the traffic light looks like
On the first day after the handover of power, there are important dates in the calendar for the new government: The Chancellor meets with the country leaders for the Corona summit, the Foreign Minister enters the international stage. But some have to get to their own homes first.
The traffic light government of Olaf Scholz does not have much time to get used to. Just one day after the swearing-in, the prime ministers want to discuss the dramatic corona situation and the next steps with the chancellor. Many of his ministers already have plans – but the chancellor himself has the tightest schedule.
Handovers
In the Chancellery and many ministries, official business was handed over on Wednesday – but not in all of them due to the deadline. At noon, Scholz returned to his old place of work, the Ministry of Finance, and officially handed the house over to his successor Christian Lindner. After that, he also wants to be there when his new government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit takes over. Predecessor Steffen Seibert already released the Twitter account @RegSsprecher on Wednesday – but Hebestreit announced that he would only tweet there from Thursday.
In the afternoon, the Green Party politician Anne Spiegel will take over from Christine Lambrecht in the Family Ministry, who most recently had two ministries in her hands – family and justice. The Ministry of Justice is also handing over Lambrecht today – to the FDP politician Marco Buschmann. In other houses, such as the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the first work meetings are taking place.
The Prime Minister’s Conference
In the afternoon, the prime ministers of the federal states want to discuss the corona situation with Scholz, among other things. This is not a premiere for Scholz: He has also usually been present at previous federal-state conferences, first as Vice Chancellor and Minister of Finance, and most recently as Chancellor-designate. It remains to be seen whether new rules to contain the pandemic will be discussed. Economics minister Robert Habeck will also take part.
Chancellor on the international stage
Before the meeting with the Prime Minister, there is already an appointment on the international stage. US President Joe Biden is holding a two-day summit for democracy that Scholz wants to attend digitally. It should be about authoritarianism, corruption and respect for human rights.
First trips by the ministers
The new Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is already on her way: on Wednesday evening she left for her inaugural visits to Europe. First one appointment in Paris on Thursday, then two in Brussels. On Friday it’s off to Warsaw. She wants to discuss, among other things, the situation between Russia and Ukraine, the management of the climate crisis and the situation on the Polish-Belarusian border.
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser is also going on her first trip: in Brussels, she takes part in the meeting of EU interior ministers. Among other things, it will deal with the fight against organized crime, threats in the area of migration and cooperation in the fight against terrorism.
Bundestag
Compared to traveling and handing over office, this is almost the bread-and-butter business: the Bundestag meets. Unless urgent comes up, the ministers usually attend the plenary sessions on the government bench. On Thursday, among other things, the election of a new Bundestag Vice-President is on the agenda because the Green politician Claudia Roth will become Minister of State for Culture.
In addition, there is debate about economic aid in the Corona crisis and the impending escalation of the Ukraine conflict. Usually a new Federal Chancellor holds a first government declaration in the Bundestag soon after he is sworn in – Scholz will most likely not do so until the next week of the session.