Markus Rosenthal discusses coalitions in German politics and lessons the UK could learn. Some key points: 1) Coalitions are common in Germany and can take weeks or months to negotiate, with coalition contracts over 100 pages long. 2) Major German parties that have participated in coalitions include the CDU, CSU, SPD, Greens, and The Left. 3) Coalition governments in Germany have included the Grand Coalition between the CDU/CSU and SPD as well as various two-party coalitions. 4) The CSU is similar to but also different from the SNP in that it represents Bavaria but also participates in national governing coalitions led by

1. Markus Rosenthal
Managing Director, nuances
25 February 2015
Open Road | London
Coalition Building for Britain:
Any lessons to be learned from German politics?

2. Setting the scene
Coalitions are a way of life in Germany
Negotiations can take weeks and months at a time
Outside views are still considered
Coalition contracts have 130+ pages
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3. Germany: Coalitions are a way of life
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© WikiNight2
SPD + Greens
CDU + SPD
SPD +CDU
CSU
Greens + SPD
Greens + CDU
SPD + the Left
The Left + SPD + Greens
SPD + Greens + SSW
SPD

4. Composition of the Federal Council
“Bundesrat” – the upper house
Coalitions in the “Länder”
Grand Coalition
Red-Green Coalition
Black-Yellow Coalition
Social-Liberal Coalition
“Ampel“ Coalition
Red-Red Coalition
Red-Red-Green Coalition
Black-Green Coalition
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© Bundesrat

5. Which parties matter?
CDU – Christian Democratic Union
CSU – Christian Social Union
SPD – Social Democratic Party
FDP – Free Democratic Party (Free
Market)
Greens – self-explanatory
The Left – Socialists/Communists; the party
roots go back to the SED, the governing
party of the GDR
AfD – Alternative for Germany
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Not in the Bundestag
Not in the Bundestag

6. Coalitions since Helmut Kohl
Chancellor Helmut Kohl of the Black-Yellow Coalition
– 1982 - 1983 Kohl‘s Cabinet I
– 1983 - 1987 Kohl‘s Cabinet II
– 1987 - 1991 Kohl‘s Cabinet III
– 1991 - 1994 Kohl‘s Cabinet IV
– 1994 - 1998 Kohl‘s Cabinet V
Chancellor Gerhard Schröder of the Red-Green
Coalition
– 1998 - 2002 Schröder‘s Cabinet I
– 2002 - 2005 Schröder‘s Cabinet II
Chancellor Angela Merkel of the Grand Coalition and
the Black-Yellow Coalition
– 2005 - 2009 Merkel‘s Cabinet I
– 2009 - 2013 Merkel‘s Cabinet II
– 2013 - present Merkel‘s Cabinet III
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Governing Parties

7. Special case: CSU - Bavaria
Similarities to the SNP
Strong sense of regional identity
CSU views matter on a national level
CSU policies are often not in the
national interest. Regional interests
ahead of national interests:
– road toll for foreign drivers on
the Autobahn
– no new electricity lines from
northern Germany to southern
Germany
Differences from the SNP
Sister-Party of the CDU (conservative) –
contributes about one sixth of the
vote to the overall CDU results
Participated in a lot of national
governments
CSU influence is strong due to the fact
that they are threating – from time to
time – to leave the coalition and don´t
want to be the sister party of the CDU
anymore
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8. Duration of the negotiations
16th German Bundestag (2005) – 7 weeks
17th German Bundestag (2009) – 4 weeks
18th German Bundestag (2013) – 8 weeks
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9. The party leaders of the current coalition
Angela Merkel – Christian Democratic Union (CDU)
Horst Seehofer – Christian Social Union (CSU)
Sigmar Gabriel – Social Democratic Party (SPD)
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10. Coalitions should be easy to run with a
coalition committee
The Coalition Committee consists of:
Angela Merkel: CDU leader, Chancellor, member of the Bundestag (MdB)
Sigmar Gabriel: SPD leader, Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy,
member of the Bundestag (MdB)
Horst Seehofer: CSU leader, Prime Minister of Bavaria
– Seehofer is not in the federal parliament, but he is very influential in
determining coalition policies
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11. However, the reality is…
It rarely meets – about one or two meetings per year
The work is done by the “underlings”
Ideas from outside are needed = lots of opportunities to make your voice heard
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12. Coalitions simply mean –
if you choose the right partner, you will stay
in power
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13. How it works in Germany
Companies, communications agencies and pressure groups lobby before and
during coalition talks
Only in the very last days do leaders sit together without any outside influence
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14. Length of Coalition Agreements:
16th German Bundestag (2005) – CDU, CSU & SPD: 168 pages
17th German Bundestag (2009) – CDU, CSU & FDP: 132 pages
18th German Bundestag (2013) – CDU, CSU & SPD: 130 pages
How it works in Germany
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15. What the UK can learn from the German
experience – if it wishes to.
If UK elections no longer produce a clear result, leading to coalitions or
agreements, this will change the mind-set of politicians – they will always be
thinking of deals they may have to make with other parties
Coalition negotiations may become more formal and it may take longer before a
government is formed
Coalition agreements may become much more detailed
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Thank you for your time
Markus Rosenthal
Managing Director
nuances
Neue Grünstraße 17/18
10179 Berlin, Germany
T +49 (0)30 257 407 20
F +49 (0)30 257 407 29
mrosenthal@nuances.de
www.nuances.de