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How united are the federal and state governments?
More united than rarely in recent weeks. The message from the Wednesday afternoon conference should be: We are all working together. Chancellor Merkel emphasizes that all federal states want to implement the resolutions. It was different in previous meetings. Often, country governments interpreted the agreements differently. Thuringian Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow (Die Linke) issued a protocol statement. So I want It will get the Bundestag and the Bundesrat more closely involved in the future. Thuringia does not refuse to accept the resolutions.
Who prevailed in the negotiations?
Prime ministers have largely approved federal proposals. There were only a few changes. For example, the restrictions will go into effect next Monday. The federal government had planned the start date for next Wednesday. The federal states have also reached a specific upper limit for gatherings in public spaces, namely ten people. The requirements for retail have been relaxed.
In what environment did the discussions take place?
Chancellor Merkel (CDU), Berlin’s ruling mayor Müller (SPD) and Bavarian Prime Minister Söder (CSU) seemed serious and tense after the meeting. Söder claims to have felt great determination on the part of the countries in the talks. The format of a video conference may also have contributed to the fact that the federal and state governments were largely in agreement after about four and a half hours. The face-to-face meeting at the Chancellery two weeks ago only ended late at night, with few results and a contrite chancellor.
What made you rethink?
Criticism of the different rules had grown stronger in recent days – keyword: accommodation ban. Public pressure to create uniform and understandable guidelines increased. Chancellor Merkel and the prime ministers hope that people are more likely to accept the restrictions if they are the same everywhere. Another goal of the new rulings is for them to face the courts providing more concrete reasons.
What does the opposition think in the Bundestag?
Criticize some of the decisions. The financial policy of the FDP Katja Hessel in Nuremberg, for example, describes the calculation basis for emergency aid for companies as “arbitrary and unfair”. The closure of gastronomy is a “blow to the pit of the stomach.” The AfD speaks of “absurd fantasies of confinement”. Greens leader Habeck said his party was “at the center of the decisions.” But now he would take revenge that the government had not prepared better for the fall.
How are things politically?
Tomorrow morning, Chancellor Merkel will explain the resolutions in the Bundestag. It is the third government statement from the Chancellor this year and the second on the corona pandemic. Presumably, he will also respond to criticism from many deputies who have asked for more voice in recent days. In the federal states, the governments will implement the resolutions by general decree. In some states, special sessions of state parliaments are planned, in Bavaria on Friday.
