So far, the CDU and the Greens have never governed together in the most populous federal state.
(Photo: dpa)
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Düsseldorf At least 1000 new wind turbines, less land use and the same pay for teachers: almost two weeks after the state elections in North Rhine-Westphalia, the CDU and the Greens have agreed on detailed key points for a possible government alliance. At the end of their four-day exploratory talks, delegations from both parties agreed on a twelve-page result paper entitled “For the future of North Rhine-Westphalia”.
On the basis of the exploratory paper, the top committees of the CDU and Greens are to decide this Sunday on the official start of coalition negotiations. So far, the CDU and the Greens have never governed together in the most populous federal state.
Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst (CDU) and Greens top candidate Mona Neubaur were satisfied. “The strength for our future lies in the reconciliation of supposed opposites,” explained Wüst. He thanked the Greens for “constructive, serious advice appropriate to the challenges” and added: “This common spirit can lead to a future alliance for the benefit of our country.”
The head of the Greens, Neubaur, said: “We want to be the guarantor that a new state government works with the times.” The CDU and the Greens had developed a “resilient basis”. “Both parties are united by the serious will to find generation-fair solutions for the challenges of the present and future in times of multiple crises.” Criticism of the paper, on the other hand, came from environmental and nature conservationists.
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Around 100 delegates from the Greens are coming together in Essen on Sunday for a small party conference to vote on the start of coalition negotiations. In Düsseldorf, the similarly sized extended state executive committee of the CDU will decide on this. The Greens state executive recommended that its members agree to the start of coalition negotiations. The CDU will also recommend this to the extended state board, it said.
NRW: 1000 additional wind turbines and 10,000 additional teachers planned
Among other things, the CDU and the Greens are committed to a climate-neutral industrial country in the paper. “We will make North Rhine-Westphalia the first climate-neutral industrial region in Europe.” The parties want to launch an “immediate climate protection program” and an early phase-out of coal by 2030. With a “prompt” new key decision, people in the lignite mining area should get clarity. Five villages threatened by resettlement are to be preserved. According to the paper, the CDU and the Greens want to build at least 1,000 additional wind turbines over the next five years and use all areas suitable for photovoltaics.
In the coming years, 10,000 additional teachers are to be hired. With a binding step-by-step plan, the starting salary for all teachers is also to be raised to A13. So far, teachers at primary, secondary, secondary and comprehensive schools in NRW have been paid less than teachers at the upper secondary level. In addition, 3,000 police officers are to be hired annually instead of the previous 2,500.
The CDU clearly won the election on May 15 with 35.7 percent. The Greens were able to almost triple their share of the vote compared to 2017 to 18.2 percent and ended up in third place behind the SPD (26.7 percent). So far, North Rhine-Westphalia has been governed by a black-yellow coalition.
More: Impetus for black-green in NRW and in the north – signal for the federal government?
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