https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Germany in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed The Bundestag is well known for its lengthy discussions over Germany’s hot topics. But tempers flared up to a higher level on Wednesday during a debate which covered topics including the recent right-wing riots in Germany. https://www.thelocal.de/20180912/former-spd-chief-schulz-to-afds-gauland-you-belong-on-the-dung-heap Wed, 12 Sep 2018 17:35:08 +0200 former-spd-chief-schulz-to-afds-gauland-you-belong-on-the-dung-heap Germany's Social Democrats start campaigning on Saturday ahead of a party referendum that spells the last threat to Chancellor Angela Merkel's hopes of forming a new government, five months after inconclusive elections. https://www.thelocal.de/20180217/merkels-fate-in-spd-hands-as-members-vote-on-power-pact Sat, 17 Feb 2018 06:12:10 +0100 merkels-fate-in-spd-hands-as-members-vote-on-power-pact Social Democratic Party leader Martin Schulz announced on Tuesday he would quit as chairman of the storied labour movement, but because of internal divisions his designated successor Andrea Nahles must wait to take the reins. https://www.thelocal.de/20180214/social-democrats-head-schulz-quits-amid-party-rift Wed, 14 Feb 2018 10:10:06 +0100 social-democrats-head-schulz-quits-amid-party-rift One of Germany’s most influential publications was thrown into chaos on Friday when its high-profile publisher was sacked for describing a murder carried out by the Social Democrat leader in a newsletter. https://www.thelocal.de/20180209/newspaper-editor-sacked-for-describing-the-perfect-murder-of-martin-schulz Fri, 09 Feb 2018 18:21:25 +0100 newspaper-editor-sacked-for-describing-the-perfect-murder-of-martin-schulz Germany's embattled centre-left leader Martin Schulz said Friday he would abandon a bid to become foreign minister in a new coalition government with Chancellor Angela Merkel, after massive resistance from his own party. https://www.thelocal.de/20180209/schulz-abandons-bid-for-foreign-ministry-as-spd-power-struggle-heats-up Fri, 09 Feb 2018 15:25:38 +0100 schulz-abandons-bid-for-foreign-ministry-as-spd-power-struggle-heats-up German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel lashed out on Friday at his likely successor, Martin Schulz, saying his party colleague had broken a promise not to serve in Chancellor Angela Merkel's new cabinet. https://www.thelocal.de/20180209/snubbed-foreign-minister-lashes-out-at-lack-of-respect-in-spd Fri, 09 Feb 2018 11:36:47 +0100 snubbed-foreign-minister-lashes-out-at-lack-of-respect-in-spd Barely a year after promising to jolt Germany's oldest party back to life, Martin Schulz has said he will step down as leader of the Social Democrats - weakened by a poll debacle and a U-turn too many. https://www.thelocal.de/20180208/hero-to-loser-the-broken-promises-of-spd-leader-schulz Thu, 08 Feb 2018 09:45:33 +0100 hero-to-loser-the-broken-promises-of-spd-leader-schulz Talks between the top German parties on forming a new government for Chancellor Angela Merkel's fourth term spilled into overtime Monday but confidence appeared to be growing they would strike a deal. https://www.thelocal.de/20180205/confidence-grows-for-deal-on-new-merkel-government Mon, 05 Feb 2018 11:39:10 +0100 confidence-grows-for-deal-on-new-merkel-government Shortly before the end of grand coalition talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, support for the Social Democrats (SPD) has reached a historic low of 18 percent, according to a new survey. https://www.thelocal.de/20180202/spd-hits-record-low Fri, 02 Feb 2018 11:33:05 +0100 spd-hits-record-low While Social Democrats (SPD) leader Martin Schulz continues to promote the new edition of a grand coalition after an agreement was reached with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives on Friday, more and more of his colleagues are speaking out against it. https://www.thelocal.de/20180116/proposed-coalition-deal-met-with-resistance-among-social-democrats Tue, 16 Jan 2018 13:02:34 +0100 proposed-coalition-deal-met-with-resistance-among-social-democrats Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's the prettiest politician of them all? (Hint: not Chancellor Merkel) https://www.thelocal.de/20180110/beauty-plays-an-important-role-in-politics-study Wed, 10 Jan 2018 11:26:49 +0100 beauty-plays-an-important-role-in-politics-study Nearly three months after Germany’s general election, the Social Democrats are considering a “KoKo” or a “cooperation coalition” with Merkel’s conservatives. But what exactly could this agreement entail? https://www.thelocal.de/20171213/the-spd-in-a-koko-what-you-need-to-know Wed, 13 Dec 2017 17:28:37 +0100 the-spd-in-a-koko-what-you-need-to-know The Social Democrats, Germany's second strongest party, agreed on Thursday to kick off exploratory talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives that could lead to a new coalition government early next year. https://www.thelocal.de/20171208/spd-agrees-to-open-government-talks-with-merkel-after-leader-pleads-for-green-light Fri, 08 Dec 2017 09:46:50 +0100 spd-agrees-to-open-government-talks-with-merkel-after-leader-pleads-for-green-light The head of Germany's Social Democrats, Martin Schulz, a potential future governing partner of Chancellor Angela Merkel, called Thursday for the creation of a "United States of Europe" by 2025. https://www.thelocal.de/20171207/spd-leader-schulz-calls-for-united-states-of-europe-by-2025 Thu, 07 Dec 2017 15:29:49 +0100 spd-leader-schulz-calls-for-united-states-of-europe-by-2025 Germany's Social Democrats, the country's second-largest party, plans to decide Thursday whether or not to help Chancellor Angela Merkel end months of political paralysis in Europe's biggest economy. https://www.thelocal.de/20171206/social-democrats-all-torn-up-about-whether-to-dance-the-merkel Wed, 06 Dec 2017 10:10:53 +0100 social-democrats-all-torn-up-about-whether-to-dance-the-merkel The head of Germany's Social Democrats, Martin Schulz, said on Monday he had been urged by French President Emmanuel Macron and other European leaders to join Chancellor Angela Merkel's next government and push for EU reforms. https://www.thelocal.de/20171205/schulz-says-eu-allies-urged-him-to-join-merkel-government Tue, 05 Dec 2017 10:21:38 +0100 schulz-says-eu-allies-urged-him-to-join-merkel-government Chancellor Angela Merkel will hold first talks Thursday with Social Democrat chief Martin Schulz hoping to end Germany's political stalemate, but the atmosphere is poisoned by disobedience within her ranks. https://www.thelocal.de/20171130/merkel-to-start-talks-with-reluctant Thu, 30 Nov 2017 13:09:30 +0100 merkel-to-start-talks-with-reluctant Pressure mounted Wednesday on Germany's Social Democrat leader Martin Schulz to reconsider an alliance with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives and stop Europe's biggest economy from sinking into months of paralysis. https://www.thelocal.de/20171122/pressure-mounts-on-social-democrats-to-throw-merkel-a-coalition-lifeline Wed, 22 Nov 2017 16:46:52 +0100 pressure-mounts-on-social-democrats-to-throw-merkel-a-coalition-lifeline German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her beleaguered rival Martin Schulz embark on a final push for votes Friday ahead of a weekend election, both seeking to beat back a challenge from the emboldened hard-right. https://www.thelocal.de/20170922/merkel-takes-on-hard-right-in-final-german-vote-push Fri, 22 Sep 2017 14:51:26 +0200 merkel-takes-on-hard-right-in-final-german-vote-push Save for pensioners or invest in young people? It's one of the most prickly debates across Germany ahead of next week's election, and with voters over 60 making up the biggest share of the electorate, politicians are pulling out all the stops to charm retirees. https://www.thelocal.de/20170916/as-germany-ages-grey-vote-has-younger-generations-worried Sat, 16 Sep 2017 18:03:33 +0200 as-germany-ages-grey-vote-has-younger-generations-worried