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🇩🇪 Germany /Elections & Politics

What follows the election? Reform plans now facing renewed scrutiny

From Die Zeit · () German

Translated from German and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Analysis From a news agency Ongoing story
  • Germany’s governing Union and SPD drew different conclusions from the state election in Saxony-Anhalt, particularly over controversial pension, sick-leave, care and tax reforms.
  • The SPD said public uncertainty over the reforms contributed to the AfD’s clear victory and called for changes, while the CDU urged the government to continue its reform course.
  • Possible changes include transitional rules for early retirement after 45 contribution years and reconsideration of proposals requiring medical certificates from the first day of absence.

The state election in Saxony-Anhalt has exposed a sharp disagreement inside Germany’s governing coalition. The Union and the SPD share a federal government, but they are drawing different lessons from the result and from the AfD’s clear victory.

For the SPD, controversial plans on pensions, sick leave, long-term care and taxes unsettled voters. SPD leader Bärbel Bas described the election as a clear rejection of the federal government. At party headquarters, the conclusion was that the unpopular reforms needed to be discussed again and that simply carrying on was not an option.

A wrong conclusion would be that the many reforms we have taken on should not continue at a high speed.

· Thorsten FreiThe CDU parliamentary group leader argued that the election should not slow the government’s reform agenda.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he wanted to discuss how the coalition could continue the reform course it had started. But CDU parliamentary group leader Thorsten Frei warned against slowing the agenda. “A wrong conclusion would be that the many reforms we have taken on should not continue at a high speed,” he said.

Now throwing the federal government into chaos cannot be our path.

· Bärbel BasThe SPD leader said her party did not want to destabilize the coalition.

The SPD does not want to fundamentally abandon the reforms, either. “Now throwing the federal government into chaos cannot be our path,” Bas said. But she added: “We still have to change something.”

One issue is early retirement after 45 years of contributions. Coalition leaders had agreed to implement the pension commission’s proposals as a package, including the abolition of penalty-free retirement after 45 contribution years. That package could now be reopened. A complete reversal appears unlikely, but broad transitional rules and exceptions are emerging as possibilities. Merz said the coalition must discuss how to treat the life histories of people with long contribution records.

We still have to change something.

· Bärbel BasBas said the SPD nevertheless wanted adjustments after the election.

Another flashpoint is sick leave from the first day of absence. The SPD says the proposal angered voters before the election. The party argues that signals suggesting people should work more and longer, take fewer sick days and face tougher conditions created uncertainty.

This may not have been expressed clearly enough.

· Friedrich MerzThe chancellor discussed how the coalition should treat people with long contribution records.
About this summary

Originally published by Die Zeit in German. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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