7 h. ago Friedrich Merz arrives as a humbled new German chancellor – but that may not be the worst way to start | Jörg Lau

Defeat in the first round of a confirmation vote was humiliating. It could be the lesson Merz needed to change his leadership styleThere goes the cliche about German politics being stable but dull. Germany finally has a new leader, but only after a day of drama, suspense and historic twists. The conservative Friedrich Merz failed to secure a majority confirming him as chancellor in the first round of voting in the Bundestag. In eight decades of postwar Germany, this has never happened before.When Merz’s cabinet was finally sworn in later on Tuesday afternoon, after a successful second round, both parties in the governing coalition – the conservative CDU/CSU and the Social Democrats (SPD) – were eager to play down the failure as a mere hiccup. But the high drama indicates a new degree of fragmentation and instability in the German party system. It is certain to affect the way this new administration will govern.Jörg Lau is an international correspondent for the German weekly Die Zeit...

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28 h. ago Germany’s Merz confirmed as chancellor in second parliamentary vote after shock first

New leader suffered humiliating loss in the first round, falling six votes short of an absolute majority

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30 h. ago Germany’s Merz confirmed as chancellor in second parliamentary vote after first round shock defeat

New leader suffered a humiliating loss in the first round – falling six votes short of an absolute majority

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31 h. ago What held up Friedrich Merz’s confirmation as chancellor and what’s next for Germany?

The CDU/CSU leader suffered an embarrassing surprise defeat in a first vote that was expected to be a formalityEurope live – latest updatesFriedrich Merz has been confirmed as Germany’s new chancellor but the process was not as smooth as he would have liked – and that’s an understatement. Continue reading...

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32 h. ago Germany’s Merz confirmed as chancellor in second vote following first round humiliation – Europe live

CDU/CSU leader had expected an easy victory in ballot to succeed the outgoing Olaf ScholzMerz suffers shock defeat in German parliament vote for chancellorFor what it’s worth, multiple German media are now suggesting that there won’t be another round of voting today – exactly because Merz and his team worry about the risk of another hugely embarrassing defeat.Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Bild and Stern’s Julias Betschka all say the second vote is unlikely to take place today. Let’s wait for the official confirmation, though. Continue reading...

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32 h. ago Germany’s Merz secures chancellorship in second parliamentary vote after shock upset

The fresh result will be a relief for Mr Merz after he failed to gather the votes needed to form a coalition in the first round this morning

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2 w. ago Rachel Reeves set to meet White House officials at US summit next week as hopes of trade deal with Washington grow

The Chancellor confirmed yesterday she will have 'conversations with the US administration' when she travels to America for a summit.

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3 w. ago Government finally funds blast furnace raw materials after takeover

Ministers have agreed payment to fund coal and iron ore deliveries to keep Britain's last blast furnaces running 48 hours after taking control of the site from its Chinese owners in Parliamentary vote.

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