Germany Ruling Coalition Collapsed

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will put the question of his government credibility to a vote in the Bundestag on 15 January. Scholz announced the dismissal of Finance Minister Christian Lindner. The ruling ‘traffic light coalition’ in Germany, consisting of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and the Union 90/Greens, has collapsed. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will put the question of his government credibility to a vote in the Bundestag on 15 January in order to hold early elections in March, dw.com reports. According to the Chancellor, he is in agreement with Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck that Germany needs quick clarity on the future political course. In the few weeks left before Christmas, Scholz intends to put all bills that need to be passed quickly to a vote in the Bundestag, such as emergency support for industry and measures to stabilize pensions. Earlier, Scholz announced the dismissal of Finance Minister Christian Lindner, who is the FDP chairman. Later that evening, Lindner blamed Scholz for the collapse of the red-green-yellow coalition. He emphasized the willingness of the Free Democrats to take charge of Germany’s destiny in the other government after new elections. The coalition partners have long been deeply divided over economic, financial and social policy issues that left them unable to agree on Germany’s budget for the coming year 2025. The conflict between them flared up again late last week when a letter from Finance Minister Christian Lindner to Chancellor Scholz demanding a fundamental change in Germany’s economic, financial and social policies was made public. The message was sharply criticized by the SPD and the Greens, who accused the Free Democrats of being unwilling to work together to find solutions to the problems facing the country and of seeking an excuse to break the coalition.