It was about as grovelling as a letter can get. In June, the health ministers of Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands were forced by their respective chancellors and prime ministers to write to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, apologising for their efforts to buy Covid-19 vaccines on behalf of their health systems. It was, they conceded, ‘of utmost importance to have a common single and joint approach to the various pharmaceutical companies’.
At that moment, with the new coronavirus raging across Europe, and economies in lockdown, the EU was busily putting together a plan that would make sure that if and when a vaccine became available, the continent’s citizens would be the first to get the shot. ‘When it comes to fighting a global pandemic, there is no place for “me first”,’ argued von der Leyen when she announced the scheme, before pointing out that ‘harmful competition’ for scarce resources should be avoided. Instead, budget
The EU has botched its vaccination programme spectator.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from spectator.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Germany to put coronavirus protesters under observation
Seven elections
The balancing act between protecting public health and people s rights to freedom will also influence elections, and there are plenty of those in Germany in 2021.
Citizens will head to the polls in six of Germany s 16 states. In Baden-Württemberg, popular Premier Winfried Kretschmann the first and only state premier from the environmentalist Green party is standing for reelection in March. April will be interesting in Thuringia, where Bodo Ramelow is currently the sole state premier from the Left party.
In Saxony-Anhalt, it will be decided, at the latest, by the election in June whether the troubled coalition of the conservative Christian Democrats, center-left Social Democrats, and Greens will endure.
Saksa aikoo sallia syyrialaisten karkotuksia ensi vuonna – käytännön toteutus voi olla vaikeaa yle.fi - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from yle.fi Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Opinion: Angela Merkel rocks Bundestag with pandemic speech
Angela Merkel s expected final Bundestag budget debate became a historic speech on responsibility during the pandemic, DW s Christoph Strack writes.
Merkel gave a speech so stirring that it came as a surprise to some Bundestag members
Wednesday was meant to be the 16th and final time that German Chancellor Angela Merkel presented and defended the coming year s federal budget in the Bundestag. Instead, she argued for the strictest measures yet to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus. If people spend too much time with others, now just before Christmas, it could end up being the last celebration with the grandparents, Merkel said. Surely then we would have messed up. We shouldn t do that.