Berlin [Germany], November 11: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is under increasing pressure from rival parties to accelerate plans for a general election, with conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz calling for a crucial vote to set the process going as early as Wednesday.
Following the collapse of the ruling coalition when the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) pulled out of the arrangement with Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens, Scholz had announced plans to call a vote of confidence in January, ahead of a possible election in March.
However, Merz - the head of Germany's conservative opposition Christian Democrats (CDU) and also the head of the parliamentary bloc that includes the CDU's Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU) - is leading calls for the election to be brought forward, telling the magazine Stern that a planned parliamentary address by Scholz on Wednesday would be a "good opportunity" for a confidence vote in his now minority government. (DPA)
Source: Qatar Tribune