Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, has lost a vote of no confidence in parliament, setting the country on course for an election in February.
The loss comes after the collapse of Mr Scholz’s “traffic light” coalition, based on the party colours of three parties, Scholz’s Social Democrats, the Free Liberals and The Green Party.
Friedrich Merz, the conservative Christian Democrat Union (CDU) leader, had previously slammed the chancellor as “the low point in the 75-year history of the Federal Republic of Germany”.
Mr Merz said: “He leaves Germany in a deep crisis, isolated in Europe, and politically adrift.
“European leaders have stopped taking Scholz seriously. He either remains silent for hours or lectures the world without listening.”
The chancellor had himself asked Germany’s parliament to declare that it has no confidence in him, taking the first formal step towards securing an early national election.
Addressing parliament, Mr Scholz framed the snap election as an opportunity for voters to set a new course for Germany, casting it as a choice between a future of higher investment and one of cuts that he said the conservatives were promising.
Mr Scholz, who served as finance minister for four years in a previous coalition with the conservatives before becoming head of a new government in 2021, accused other parties of wanting to block the investments Germany needed.
“Shortsightedness might save money in the short term, but the mortgage on our future is unaffordable,” he told lawmakers.
In parliament, Mr Scholz outlined plans for massive spending on security, business and social welfare, but Mr Merz demanded to know why he had not taken those steps in the past, asking: “Were you on another planet?”
Mr Scholz argued that his government had made great progress over the past three years, including boosting spending on the German armed forces, which he said previous CDU-led governments had left “in a deplorable state”.
He said: “It is high time to invest powerfully and decisively in Germany.” He warned about Russia’s war in Ukraine, saying that “a highly armed nuclear power is waging war in Europe just two hours’ flight from here”.
But Mr Merz fired back at Mr Scholz that he had left the country in “one of the biggest economic crises of the postwar era”.
Mr Merz said: “You had your chance, but you did not use it... You, Mr Scholz, do not deserve confidence.”
Mr Scholz’s Social Democrats face a grim outlook in public opinion polls.
The party’s approval rating stands at just 16 percent, far behind the conservative CDU/CSU bloc at 31-34 percent and the far-Right AfD party at over 20 per cent.
Mr Scholz is now expected to visit Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the German president, to request the dissolution of the Bundestag.
Mr Steinmeier has 21 days to make a decision. If the Bundestag is dissolved, new elections are likely to take place on Feb 23, 2025.
Mr Scholz will remain as caretaker leader until the election.