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POLITICS

AfD leader Petry considers walking away from politics

Frauke Petry has become the face of a growing far-right movement in Germany. But only months before a national election, she is considering quitting.

AfD leader Petry considers walking away from politics
Frauke Petry. Photo: DPA

“Neither politics nor the AfD are things that I can’t do without,” Petry, who is co-leader of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) told Tagesspiegel on Thursday.

Petry told the paper that it makes sense from time to time to consider “re-calibrating” one’s life.

“That’s the way I see it now after more than four years with the AfD, a time which has demanded an enormous amount of energy and has made me say goodbye to a normal life.”

The AfD was founded as an anti-Euro party in 2013, but lurched to the right two years later, taking a staunchly anti-immigration stance during the refugee crisis of 2015.

Public fear of the adverse effects of the refugee influx, triggered by mass sexual assaults over New Year in Cologne, led to a sharp increase in the AfD’s popularity.

The party gained seats in five state parliaments in 2016, most astonishingly gaining roughly a quarter of the votes in the former eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt.

But the party has also been riven by several internal conflicts, while it has rarely been out of the news due to comments by party leaders seen by many as racist or homophobic.

Most recently Björn Höcke, leader of the party in the state of Thuringia, gave a speech criticizing how Germany remembers the Holocaust, saying that in schools “German history – is made into something rotten and ridiculous.”

The speech led Josef Schuster, chair of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, to respond that “the AfD have shown their true face with these anti-Semitic and extremely inhumane words.”

The controversy led to a feud between Petry and co-leader Jörg Meuthen. While Petry sought to have Höcke expelled from the party, Meuthen has stuck by him.

Plummeting polling figures and a disappointing result in a state election in Saarland this month have also led some analysts to predict the complete demise of the party.

The feuding party leadership has still failed to pick a candidate to lead it into September’s election. Petry has sought to lead the party alone, but other members of the leadership opposed to her want a “team of leaders” for the campaign.

Speaking of internal fights, Petry told Tagesspiegel that one cannot take attacks in politics personally, “otherwise you won’t last long.”

But she conceded that conflicts did have an impact on every politician, admitting that “to say anything else would be a lie.”

ECONOMY

‘Turning point’: Is Germany’s ailing economy on the road to recovery?

The German government slightly increased its 2024 growth forecast Wednesday, saying there were signs Europe's beleaguered top economy was at a "turning point" after battling through a period of weakness.

'Turning point': Is Germany's ailing economy on the road to recovery?

Output is expected to expand 0.3 percent this year, the economy ministry said, up from a prediction of 0.2 percent in February.

The slightly rosier picture comes after improvements in key indicators — from factory output to business activity — boosted hopes a recovery may be getting under way.

The German economy shrank slightly last year, hit by soaring inflation, a manufacturing slowdown and weakness in trading partners, and has acted as a major drag on the 20-nation eurozone.

But releasing its latest projections, the economy ministry said in a statement there were growing indications of a “turning point”.

“Signs of an economic upturn have increased significantly, especially in recent weeks,” Economy Minister Robert Habeck said at a press conference.

The ministry also cut its forecast for inflation this year to 2.4 percent, from a previous prediction of 2.8 percent, and sees the figure falling below two percent next year.

READ ALSO: Can Germany revive its struggling economy?

“The fall in inflation will lead to consumer demand — people have more money in their wallets again, and will spend this money,” said Habeck.

“So purchasing power is increasing, real wages are rising and this will contribute to a domestic economic recovery.”

Energy prices — which surged after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine — had also fallen and supply chain woes had eased, he added.

Several months ago there had been expectations of a strong rebound in 2024, with forecasts of growth above one percent, but these were dialled back at the start of the year as the economy continued to languish.

‘Germany has fallen behind’

But improving signs have fuelled hopes the lumbering economy — while not about to break into a sprint — may at least be getting back on its feet.

On Wednesday a closely-watched survey from the Ifo institute showed business sentiment rising for a third consecutive month in April, and more strongly than expected.

A key purchasing managers’ index survey this week showed that business activity in Germany had picked up.

And last week the central bank, the Bundesbank, forecast the economy would expand slightly in the first quarter, dodging a recession, after earlier predicting a contraction.

German Economics Minister Robert Habeck

Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) presents the latest economic forecasts at a press conference in Berlin on Wednesday, April 24th. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Michael Kappeler

Despite the economy’s improving prospects, growth of 0.3 percent is still slower than other developed economies and below past rates, and officials fret it is unlikely to pick up fast in the years ahead.

Habeck has repeatedly stressed solutions are needed for deep-rooted problems facing Germany, from an ageing population to labour shortages and a transition towards greener industries that is moving too slowly.

“Germany has fallen behind other countries in terms of competitiveness,” he said. “We still have a lot to do — we have to roll up our sleeves.”

READ ALSO: Which German companies are planning to cut jobs?

Already facing turbulence from pandemic-related supply chain woes, the German economy’s problems deepened dramatically when Russia invaded Ukraine and slashed supplies of gas, hitting the country’s crucial manufacturers hard.

While the energy shock has faded, continued weakness in trading partners such as China, widespread strikes in recent months and higher eurozone interest rates have all prolonged the pain.

The European Central Bank has signalled it could start cutting borrowing costs in June, which would boost the eurozone.

But Habeck stressed that care was still needed as, despite the expectations of imminent easing, “tight monetary policy has not yet been lifted.”

In addition, disagreements in Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party ruling coalition are hindering efforts to reignite growth, critics say.

This week the pro-business FDP party, a coalition partner, faced an angry backlash from Scholz’s SPD when it presented a 12-point plan for an “economic turnaround”, including deep cuts to state benefits.

Christian Lindner, the fiscally hawkish FDP finance minister, welcomed signs of “stabilisation” in the economic forecasts but stressed that projected medium-term growth was “too low to sustainably finance our state”.

“There are no arguments for postponing the economic turnaround,” he added.

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