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Who Needs Government? The Left Party Exploits Vacuum in German Parliament

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Even though the German federal government is still to be formed, the country’s parliament appears to be fully capable of passing new laws, and The Left (Die Linke) seems to be eager to capitalize on this opportunity.

Two months after this year’s German parliamentary elections, Berlin is yet to form the new government.

Meanwhile, some political parties have apparently realized that the formal lack of government does not prevent the Bundestag from discussing new laws, and now seek to make use of this unique opportunity.

This file photo taken on May 29, 2016 shows German Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) and the President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz during a remembrance ceremony to mark the centenary of the battle of Verdun, at the Douaumont Ossuary (Ossuaire de Douaumont), northeastern France. - Sputnik International
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Klaus Ernst, German MP and former chairman of The Left, told Sputnik Deutschland that the Bundestag now has an opportunity to express the will of the people by finally passing the laws that German political parties promised while campaigning, like the new 12 euros per hour minimum wage law championed by The Left.

Also, the lack of coalition agreements now allows German parties to jointly introduce new laws instead of submitting competing proposals.

"Things are different now because currently there’s no coalition agreement. Therefore we can submit a proposal together with the Greens and the Social Democrats. Even some CSU MPs could support our proposals. And other parties in the Bundestag also have the same situation," Ernst said.

And it appears that Die Linke is not the only political force in Germany seeking to discuss new laws as the Greens introduced a proposal to ban the use of coal as an energy source while the Social Democratic Party submitted a new draft law on immigration.

"Therefore we say: even if there is no government, the Bundestag has been elected… The Bundestag makes the laws, not the federal government; and even if the latter does not exist, the Bundestag could still legislate," Ernst surmised.

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