Overview
- Germany’s coalition committee, which met for about six hours Tuesday night at the Chancellery, ended without public decisions or a press conference.
- Party leaders agreed to work from a shared timetable, told budget drafters to finish next year’s plan while preserving fiscal reserves, and moved to hold the 2027 CO2 price steady by using the Climate and Transformation Fund.
- The CO2 step aims to cushion households and firms from expected jumps in EU carbon-market costs by tapping the government’s dedicated climate-investment pot.
- Major rifts remain over pensions, income tax, working‑time rules and health financing, following Tuesday’s jeers at the DGB congress where unions warned against weakening the eight‑hour workday.
- Senior figures including Winfried Kretschmann and Stephan Weil urged the chancellor to cut public infighting and improve internal coordination, while commentators debated—but did not endorse—the risk of a coalition break and a minority government scenario.