Merz's patience exhausted with SPD over stalled infrastructure law

CDU leader Friedrich Merz has voiced strong dissatisfaction with the Social Democratic Party (SPD), accusing them of obstructing the Infrastructure Future Act. The bill, designed to expedite large-scale construction projects, has been stalled in the Bundestag for six months.

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My patience is now also at an end, also with the Social Democrats.

"My patience is now also at an end, also with the Social Democrats," Merz reportedly stated during a CDU parliamentary group meeting, as cited by Rheinische Post. He criticized the SPD for linking the infrastructure bill with the Nature Conservation Areas Demand Act, deeming this unacceptable. Merz urged for the infrastructure law to be enacted before the summer parliamentary break, emphasizing the need to "really start building in Germany."

The Federal Ministry for Transport has also expressed frustration over the delay and the SPD's attempt to link it with nature conservation legislation. The coalition intended for the infrastructure law to create a foundation for faster planning and construction, ensuring quicker access to funds from a special asset pool.

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This law must go into the Federal Law Gazette before the parliamentary summer recess, so that we can really start building in Germany.

Meanwhile, coalition leaders are scheduled to meet with employer and union representatives on Wednesday to discuss the need for reforms in Germany, focusing on the labor market, social reforms, taxes, and bureaucracy reduction. Merz expressed cautious optimism about the dialogue, stating his desire to advance as many initiatives as possible through discussion and consensus, even if it means an exchange of views without immediate resolutions.

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It is a conversation, it is an exchange of views, there will be no results, no resolution papers. But I hope for at least a certain gain in knowledge from it, what actually carries us together.