The government coalition has been at odds over economic policy in recent months
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has sacked Finance Minister Christian Lindner, government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit confirmed on Wednesday evening. Lindner, the head of the business-friendly Free Democratic Party (FDP), has been at odds with other coalition members over economic policy.
The three coalition partners – Scholz’s Social Democrats, Lindner’s FDP, and the Greens represented by Economy Minister Robert Habeck and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock – were to hold a series of meetings this week in order to resolve their differences.
During the talks, Lindner claimed that there was not sufficient common ground between the coalition partners about economic and financial policy, the German media reported, citing those who participated in the meetings. The minister then proposed early elections at the start of 2025 to help the government “regain stability” and the ability to “act quickly,” the reports said.
According to media reports, the leaders of the three coalition parties spent two and a half hours discussing ways to plug the multibillion-euro hole in next year’s budget and give a kick-start to the misfiring economy.
According to the German broadcaster ARD, Scholz plans to call for a vote of confidence in his government in the Bundestag. That could happen in mid-January, the report said, adding that this could potentially “open the way” for early elections in March.
However, the chancellor rejected Lindner’s proposal to call early elections outright, Die Zeit reported.
