The Prospects of the Grand Coalition in Germany

The pressure for reforms is similar in all established democracies, including Germany. This is true for all policies. Lower income caused by economic development and ageing societies is a burden on all budgets. ! is increases the pressure on political actors to speed up the decision-making process. In 2005 the grand coalition of CDU/CSU and SPD was welcomed by the German people. Many commentators assumed that the political deadlock would be overcome by the government of the two major parties. Because the second chamber (Bundesrat) is the major veto-player in the German federal system, the current CDU/CSU majority in the Bundesrat was a high hurdle for the former red-green government (1998 to 2005), as until 2006 about 80 percent of all laws had to pass the second chamber. This led to early elections. People hope that the grand coalition under Chancellor Angela Merkel will overcome this restriction, which the SPD-led government could not evade.