German MPs to vote on compulsory Covid jabs ‘by end of
year’
AFP/The
Local
news@thelocal.de
@thelocalgermany
30 November
2021
15:13 CET
Germany's
incoming chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday signalled his backing for mandatory
coronavirus jabs and suggested that vote could be held on the issue before the
year is up.
Scholz, who
is holding emergency talks with outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel and regional
leaders, said he was “aware that there were cross-party debates” among
lawmakers about making the vaccine compulsory, a source at the meeting said.
“Scholz
signalled his sympathy for such a regulation,” added the source, who is from
Scholz’s centre-left Social Democratic Party (SPD).
German MPs
are now likely to vote on the issue of compulsory jabs in the Bundestag by the
end of the year, with a view to introducing the mandate at the start of
February next year.
According
to multiple DPA sources, Scholz told ministers gathered at the round table on
Tuesday that the vote could be held as a ‘vote of conscience’ – meaning parties
wouldn’t be able to whip their MPs to vote in a certain way.
Generally,
MPs are expected to vote with their parties on key issues, but with ethically
sensitive issues, exceptions can be made to allow parliamentarians to be guided
by their conscience alone.
The
introduction of a general vaccine mandate has been a hot topic in Germany after
Austria announced the move. It has previously been ruled out in Germany but
fears are growing over the dramatic fourth Covid wave and the newly detected
Omicron variant.
According
to sources of German news magazine Spiegel, Scholz said that compulsory
vaccinations should be in place “when everyone has had a realistic chance to be
double-vaccinated.”
“We should
be able to do that by the beginning of February,” he reportedly said, adding
that the Bundestag could start deliberations and make decisions on this very
quickly.
Outgoing Chancellor
Angela Merkel’s conservative CDU/CSU bloc, which will not be part of Scholz’s
incoming ruling coalition, has also come out in favour of requiring citizens to
be inoculated against Covid-19.
What else
is happening in the talks?
Scholz,
Merkel and the heads of Germany’s 16 states are discussing tougher curbs to
confront record-high infection rates and rapidly filling intensive care beds.
Among the
measures being discussed are the closures of bars and clubs, and limiting large
events.
Several
hard-hit German regions have already cancelled Christmas markets and barred the
unvaccinated from public spaces like gyms and leisure facilities.
But critics
say the patchwork of rules is confusing, and Tuesday’s crisis talks are aimed
at coming up with more uniform rules for the whole country.
Scholz
reportedly spoke to Merkel and the state premiers about a “national task” in
which solidarity had to be shown with the German states experiencing extreme
infection figures.
According
to Spiegel, Scholz said he wanted to see 30 million Covid jabs administered to
people in Germany by Christmas – and that this would help to break the wave.
He said for
this to happen, more vaccination offers are needed – involving pharmacists,
dentists and vets in giving out shots.
According
to German media, Scholz has also told participants at the talks that he is in
favour of barring the unvaccinated from more parts of public life, including
non-essential retail.
It comes
after Germany’s highest court ruled that extreme Covid measures like curfews
and contact bans – dubbed the emergency brake – were lawful, possibly paving
the way for authorities to bring in tougher restrictions again if the situation
calls for it.
The
scheduled meeting between the federal go
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