SPD-led German coalition doable by year end, party co-leader says

[October 02, 2021]  BERLIN (Reuters) - A three-way German government led by the Social Democrats (SPD) should be ready to take office by the end of the year, the co-leader of the centre-left party said in a newspaper interview published on Saturday.

Norbert Walter-Borjans said he was confident his party, which won Sunday's national election by a narrow margin that left it seeking partners, could move swiftly to agree a coalition with the Greens and the business-friendly Free Democrats (FDP).

An SPD ruling alliance with the Greens and FDP - dubbed a "traffic light" coalition after their respective colours - would command a parliamentary majority.

"The government should be in place by the end of the year. That is feasible," Walter-Borjans told the Welt am Sonntag.
 

"We don't have to hold exploratory talks until we drop this time, because we want a traffic light (coalition) in which all three partners bring their strengths to bear," he said.

"In that sense, we could start formal coalition negotiations in October and conclude them by December," he added.

Talks on forming a coalition government in Germany commonly take several weeks or months. After the last national election, on Sept. 24, 2017, such negotiations went on until the following March.

The SPD is due to hold exploratory talks with both the Greens and FDP on Sunday. The two smaller "kingmaker" parties met on Friday for a second round of talks, which FDP leader Christian Lindner said were held in a "good atmosphere".

Norbert Walter-Borjans, co-leader of Germany's Social Democratic (SPD) party, speaks during a joint news conference with the SPD's top candidate for regional elections in Saxony-Anhalt Katja Paehle one day after regional elections in Saxony-Anhalt, in Berlin, Germany June 7, 2021. John Macdougall/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

The Greens and FDP, from opposite ends of the political spectrum and at odds https://reut.rs/3uiuoJG on a range of issues, have moved centre stage after the SPD's narrow election victory - its first since 2012.

Both the SPD and Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc, which slumped to a record low result, are courting the smaller parties to get a parliamentary majority for a ruling coalition. Polls show voters would prefer the SPD to lead it.

Merkel, in power since 2005, plans to step down once a new government is formed and will stay on until that point.

(Writing by Paul Carrel; Editing by David Holmes)

[© 2021 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2021 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.