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CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL highlighted Germany’s economic strength as she kicked off campaigning today for an important state vote that comes months before national elections, and she brushed aside worries about the weakness of her party’s coalition partner.
Merkel’s center-right party faces a tough battle to extend its 10-year hold on Lower Saxony state, a northwestern region of 8 million people, in the 20 January election there. Polls suggest the centre-left opposition has a good chance of winning, which would give it a significant boost ahead of September national elections in which Merkel will seek a third term.
Merkel made clear that her Christian Democrats will make “economic competence, together with jobs – and jobs that are well-qualified and fairly paid,” along with economic strength, a keystone of this year’s campaigns. She identified opposition plans for tax increases as one battleground.
“We believe that we do, of course, need income for the state, so we are not talking about tax cuts at this point,” Merkel said at a televised news conference after her party’s leadership met in Wilhelmshaven, a port city in Lower Saxony.
“But we believe that tax increases … are not good for current economic developments, for medium-sized companies in particular but also for big companies,” she added.
Unemployment
The number of Germans out of work averaged just under 2.9 million last year, the lowest since 1991. Germany’s jobless rate of less than 7 percent contrasts with figures well over 20 percent in troubled eurozone partners Greece and Spain.
The strong German economy, and Merkel’s hard-nosed management of Europe’s debt crisis, have helped keep her popularity high and her party ahead in polls.
But the weakness of the pro-market Free Democratic Party, her junior coalition partner, means that her center-right alliance lacks a majority in surveys. The party, which campaigned at Germany’s last election for tax cuts that it failed to obtain, has taken much of the blame for frequent coalition squabbling.
In Lower Saxony, polls show the FDP short of the 5 percent support needed to stay in the state legislature, which endangers popular conservative governor David McAllister’s chances of keeping his job.
Optimistic
However, Merkel said she is “very optimistic that the (Free Democrats) will, on their own strength, with their ideas and their share in the success of the work of both the Lower Saxony state government and the federal government, be able to convince people.”
The Lower Saxony election follows a rough start for Merkel’s center-left challenger in the national elections, former Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck.
He drew criticism this week for saying the chancellor earns too little and that Merkel has an advantage because she’s a woman – adding to earlier controversy over his high earnings from public speaking. Merkel coolly dismissed a question about her challenger’s performance.
“To be honest, I take care of my own performance and I’m very satisfied with that,” she said. “The rest is for others to comment on.”
And how much is that going to cost the tax payer for yet another Government blunder?
@niall:
Our political system has long been drowning in a sea of tribunals, inquiries, commissions, investigations, hearings and probes, all of which stem from gross incompetence and/or corruption. They never amount to anything because new ones keep arriving to swamp the older ones. We tolerate it whilst foolishly trying to eliminate the root cause of it – chronyism – by electing more chronies. We’re just like 5 million hamsters on a big wheel.
The two party FF/FG cartel has to be disempowered if anything’s to change.
Reports, reviews, enquiries are what politicians do to kick the can down the road when they get into trouble, hoping people will have forgotten about the issue when they eventually come out. Lots of political reports, reviews, enquiries in ireland.
Jaysus, Lieo could have to bring Denis and Frances back. Prove them innocent, and big returns.. Who are they kidding..
Its rotten in corruption with a tribunal written all over.FG and DOB have the country destroyed.
All these broadband stories appearing online. Anyone want to send a smoke signal with the update to the rural areas?
What a farce. I wonder have enough politician’s palms been greased to get this over the line. Ireland, sure it’s it a great little island all together.
The “Independent” auditor is the one that is currently employed as the process auditor on the broadband tender for the department/government ?
Procurement and Irish government never works ..brown envelopes are to hard to turn down
If it looks like corruption and smalls like corruption, it is corruption. Shame on you minister.
Another report, yeah I wonder how that will go,Fine Gael and their cronies looking out for their fellow trough dwellers!
Might be a blessing in disguise, fixed broadband is fast becoming obsolete. Even worse if it was monopolised by one player. If the government subsidised 4g transmitters in rural areas i’m sure all the service providers would offer the service much cheaper. Then invest in 5g eventually.
Can someone tell me what he did wrong?
He had dinner with a broadband contractor/supplier which he paid €37 for and he had to leave his job because of it? Is that the jest of it?
Denis Naughton should never have resigned or been made to resign. Instead, the Government should have just gotten on with the task at hand, issued the contract and ensured that the much-needed rural broadband network was built immediately.
Will the report tell us what they had for dinner? Was it a set or tasting menu ? Was there wine pairings to match each course or perhaps a prosecco or a scotch to kick off the evening ? Did they retire to the smoking room for an Xo afterwards ? Oh I can’t wait to see
Can someone tell me what he did wrong?
He had dinner with a broadband contractor/supplier which he paid €37 for and he had to leave his job because of it? Is that the jist of it?
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