Scholz's Greens ally joins call for German chancellor to agree quicker election

By Holger Hansen and Andreas Rinke

BERLIN (Reuters) -Olaf Scholz's remaining coalition partner said on Monday it was open to an earlier parliamentary vote to open the way to a snap election, joining with opposition parties to urge Germany's chancellor to provide clarity on the matter this week.

Scholz, a Social Democrat, had originally planned to call and lose a confidence vote for January 15, the first step under German constitutional rules to triggering a new election, after his three-party coalition fell apart last week.

But his coalition partner, the Greens, joined with their former ally, the neoliberal Free Democrats, and the opposition conservatives in demanding Scholz move sooner.

"We expect him to create clarity this week," Greens co-chair Ricarda Lang told a news conference, adding that the parliamentary time remaining before an election should be devoted to urgent tasks rather than continuing the old coalition's legislative agenda.

Scholz's coalition lost its parliamentary majority last Wednesday when the FDP quit over its more left-wing partners' desire to spend more, using government borrowing if necessary.

It is now reliant on opposition parties to pass legislation, including the 2025 budget.

If no new budget is passed, the government can settle debts and obligations it has already incurred, including paying interest on bonds or state employees' salaries, but it cannot take on any new obligations.

Legislators on Monday scrapped a crucial budget planning meeting, in a sign that the chances of passing a budget were fading even as calls grow for government intervention to avert a crisis in Europe's largest economy.

The scrapping of the committee meeting makes it less likely that a majority can be cobbled together in the Bundestag to approve a budget, even if the Social Democrats and Greens manage to propose one.

The opposition conservatives, comfortably ahead in opinion polls, say Scholz is delaying the election in the hope of scoring some political wins in the weeks ahead.

Lang said parliament should use its remaining time to pass amendments strengthening the constitution against extremist parties who may gain ground in the vote, to agree fresh aid to Ukraine and to extend the national flat-rate public transport plan.

"There should be no trading off of election dates against favoured projects," she said.

Scholz on Sunday signalled willingness to ask the Bundestag to dismiss him before Christmas if leaders of the parliamentary parties decided that was necessary.

That could lead to earlier elections, though possibly at the cost of overburdening a bureaucracy unused to organising votes to such tight deadlines. Planning elections over the winter period, when many days are lost to public holidays and illness, is harder than in the traditional spring and summer months.

The heads of the national and regional election committees are due to hold a video conference on Monday to discuss how soon an election can be held.

(Writing by Thomas EscrittEditing by Sharon Singleton and Gareth Jones)