Monday 15th November 2021
Open questions are a matter for the boss
Party leaders are working on the coalition agreement
The traffic light working groups met – and did not reach an agreement in all areas. The leaders of the SPD, Greens and FDP are now fighting for them. At the beginning of the talks, all sides again put public pressure on the future government partners.
The SPD, the Greens and the FDP are fighting at the top level to clarify any unanswered questions for their desired coalition. After the discussions in working groups, the so-called main round of negotiations met again in the Hamburg state representation in Berlin. Its members include the respective party leaders and SPD chancellor candidate Olaf Scholz. The aim of the talks is to resolve any controversial points from the negotiations at working level.
The issues of climate protection and finance are still considered particularly sensitive. There were no public statements. Irrespective of the coalition agreement, the traffic light parties continued to discuss measures to counter the corona pandemic.
When it comes to climate protection, the Greens in particular have recently shown themselves to be very dissatisfied in the coalition talks. Party leader Robert Habeck had even spoken of a possible failure of the traffic lights. “Even the last person who refuses to take ambitious goals and measures when it comes to climate protection must be clear: If we protect the climate, we protect our freedom,” he told the Rheinische Post. Specifically, he spoke out in favor of an immediate climate protection program and the dismantling of environmentally and climate-damaging subsidies.
Green parliamentary deputy Oliver Krischer, who led the negotiations on the subject of climate at working level for his party, insisted that the new government must bring Germany onto the 1.5-degree path in accordance with the Paris climate protection agreement. Specifically, he named on Deutschlandfunk the phase-out of coal-fired power generation by 2030, the stipulations for saying goodbye to the combustion engine and the expansion of renewable energies.
When it comes to climate protection, declarations of intent now have to turn into “concrete action,” said SPD parliamentary deputy Matthias Miersch in the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”. “The real work is only just beginning.” FDP boss Christian Lindner expressed himself in the “SZ” “very confident that there will be a highly effective package for climate protection” that will also strengthen economic competitiveness.
Protests by activists
The talks of the main negotiating group were accompanied by protests by environmentalists and other non-governmental organizations. Activists from Greenpeace, WWF and Deutsche Umwelthilfe as well as the Campact network demonstrated in front of the Hamburg state representation for more consistent climate protection. Amnesty International called for “human rights to be the focus”. The Seebrücke organization called for a human refugee policy.
The agreements between the traffic light parties stipulate that the coalition agreement will be negotiated by the end of November. Scholz should then be elected as the new Federal Chancellor in the week from December 6th. Before that, party congresses of the SPD and FDP as well as the members of the Greens would have to agree to the coalition agreement in a survey. From the ranks of the Greens, however, doubts had recently been expressed as to whether this schedule could be adhered to.