Coalition Leaders To Meet Evening Of 29 Nov On '24 Budget-RTRS

Reuters reporting that according to unnamed sources within the coalition, the leaders of the three parties in the federal 'traffic light' coalition will meet on the evening of Wednesday 29 Nov to discuss the ongoing budget crisis. Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD), Economy Min and Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck's environmentalist Greens, and Finance Minister Christian Lindner's Free Democrats (FDP) all take varying stands on the levels of gov't spending and debt they are comfortable with.

• While Lindner put forward the plans for a supplementary 2023 budget to Cabinet on 27 Nov, the debate over the 2024 budget is still ongoing. The Constitutional Court's decision to rule off-budget climate change fund unconstitutional has blown a EUR60bn hole in the federal budget, requiring the postponement of the debt brake in 2023 and tough decisions on tax and spending in 2024.
• The coalition is already shaky, with the FDP set to hold an internal voteamong members on an as-yet-unspecified date on whether to continue in the traffic light coalition. The vote is non-binding, but a defeat could threaten Lindner's position as party leader.