Status: 10/14/2021 6:56 a.m.
While SPD Chancellor candidate Scholz is at the meeting of the G20 finance ministers in Washington, the traffic light parties are continuing their talks today in a small group. A basis for decision-making should be formulated by tomorrow.
The negotiators from the SPD, the Greens and the FDP are continuing their talks on a possible formation of a government today in a small group. After the exploratory rounds on Monday and Tuesday, the general secretaries of the parties have been trying since yesterday to put what has been negotiated on paper. The aim is to agree on a basis for a decision by tomorrow that summarizes the result of the negotiations so far. The paper is intended to make a recommendation for further action and to be presented to the party committees.
Scholz at the meeting of the G20 finance ministers
Another reason for the small group meeting is that the SPD candidate for Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as acting Federal Minister of Finance, will be at the meeting of the G20 finance ministers in Washington until this Thursday. Scholz was confident yesterday that there will be a traffic light government before Christmas. “The soundings are taking place in a very, very good and constructive atmosphere,” he said in Washington. That is why he is certain that the three parties’ plans can be realized. “Namely, that we have a new government before Christmas.” Everyone had resolved to “work quickly now”. The three parties have agreed to maintain strict confidentiality.
SPD General Secretary Lars Klingbeil confirmed that a common basis for the conclusion of the explorations for the formation of a traffic light coalition should be worked out by Friday. “Our aim is then to put something on the table,” he said. According to information from negotiating circles, Klingbeil had already met on Wednesday with FDP general secretary Volker Wissing and the federal manager of the Greens, Michael Kellner.
Big round comes together on Friday
Tomorrow the so-called 26th round will come together with six representatives from the SPD and ten each from the Greens and FDP. You should decide whether the paper that has been drawn up can form a basis for coalition talks. If this is answered in the affirmative, a state council would have to give the green light for the Greens on Sunday, the party executive committee for the SPD and the federal executive committee for the FDP.
Meanwhile, the head of the Young Liberals, Jens Teutrine, called for “a modernization agenda for the country that breaks the political deadlock of recent years” as a prerequisite for a traffic light alliance. For such a coalition “more than just legal weed” is needed, he told the editorial network Germany with a view to the intersections of the three partners, including the legalization of cannabis. What is needed is an agenda for social advancement, a BaföG reform, a “grandchildren fit pension reform” including the introduction of a statutory share pension, an increase in the mini-job limits and greater comparability in the education system.