Tensions within the coalition are rising following the demand for the resignation of Labor Minister Bärbel Bas (SPD) by Christian von Stetten, chairman of the influential parliamentary circle PKM within the CDU’s Union faction.
Esra Limbacher, spokesperson for the conservative Seeheimer Circle of the SPD, accused the Union of merely attempting to distract from its own internal issues, according to reports from the “Rheinische Post”. Limbacher told the newspaper that the calls for resignation seemed to be a maneuver designed to deflect attention from the CDU’s own problems. He further added that the CDU should unify and again emphasize common ground instead of promoting division. The SPD faction vice-chairman in the Bundestag insisted that citizens rightly expect the coalition to solve problems rather than engaging in continuous public disputes.
Meanwhile, Von Stetten had previously told the “Bild” newspaper that “the minister is no longer tenable. For months she has been blocking the reforms that our country urgently needs.”
