Germany's governing coalition collapses
German Chancellor Scholz says a vote of confidence is planned for January, possibly paving the way for snap elections. The move comes as Scholz fired Finance Minister Christian Lindner amid divisions over economic plans.
A minority government is not completely new to Germany, although they have been rare at the federal, rather than state, level.
Such an arrangement was in play in 1966 under conservative Christian Democrat (CDU) Chancellor Ludwig Erhard and also in 1982 under Helmut Schmidt of the Social Democrats (SPD). Both minority governments only lasted a few weeks.
In the first case, Erhard was replaced by his party colleague Kurt Georg Kiesinger, who managed to forge a grand coalition with the SPD. In the second case, Schmidt's minority government ended with a constructive vote of no confidence, which made Helmut Kohl of the CDU chancellor.
The chances of success for a minority government would hardly be any better today. The SPD and Greens would need partners for each decision on a case-by-case basis.
The conservative union of the CDU and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), ruled out joining a coalition with the SPD as a junior partner under Chancellor Scholz.
It could, however, help a minority SPD-Green government to gain a majority in the Bundestag as part of a looser confidence-and-supply agreement. However, the CDU-CSU bloc currently appears more interested in pushing for new elections.
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is doing the same and support from the populist party for the SPD and Greens would be out of the question on principle.
The socialist Left Party and the populist Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance, which split from the Left, have too few lawmakers in the Bundestag to be considered as a majority provider of support to a potential minority government.
India targets net-zero carbon emissions by 2070, says Modi
India’s economy will become carbon neutral by the year 2070, the country’s prime minster has announced at the COP26 climate crisis summit in Glasgow. The target date is two decades beyond what scientists say is needed to avert catastrophic climate impacts. India is the last of the world’s major carbon polluters to announce a net-zero target, with China saying it would reach that goal in 2060, and the United States and the European Union aiming for 2050.
COP26: What climate summit means for one woman in Bangladesh
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Why China's climate policy matters to us all
China's carbon emissions are vast and growing, dwarfing those of other countries. Experts agree that without big reductions in China's emissions, the world cannot win the fight against climate change. In 2020, China's President Xi Jinping said his country would aim for its emissions to reach their highest point before 2030 and for carbon neutrality before 2060. His statement has now been confirmed as China's official position ahead of the COP26 global climate summit in Glasgow. But China has not said exactly how these goals will be achieved.
Deliver on promises, developing world tells rich at climate talks
A crucial U.N. conference heard calls on its first day for the world's major economies to keep their promises of financial help to address the climate crisis, while big polluters India and Brazil made new commitments to cut emissions. World leaders, environmental experts and activists all pleaded for decisive action to halt the global warming which threatens the future of the planet at the start of the two-week COP26 summit in the Scottish city of Glasgow on Monday. The task facing negotiators was made even more daunting by the failure of the Group of 20 major industrial nations to agree ambitious new commitments at the weekend.