Merkel Faces Dissent From Party Ranks Over SPD Coalition Accord
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel faces internal party resistance to her planned coalition with the Social Democrats as efforts by both sides to form a joint government for her third term enter the final phase.
Merkel is due to address a meeting in Berlin today of members of her Christian Democrats after separate weekend attacks by the CDU’s economic council and a group of more than 50 young party lawmakers. Both criticized the coalition pact published last month for making too many concessions to the SPD on matters such as a national minimum wage and on lowering the retirement age to 63 from 67 for some workers.