Merkel could be ready to lead a minority German government, minister says

Maurizio Gambarini | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images

Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel attends a press conference in the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany on July 05, 2017.

Nonetheless, the SPD is holding a three-day congress this week and will ask members’ permission to start coalition talks with the Conservatives. A poll published by the German Spiegel newspaper showed that only 28 percent of SPD voters favoured another grand coalition, though 57 percent of them argued leader Martin Schulz should support a minority government led by Merkel.

Though Schulz has said at the start of his campaign that he would not join a coalition with Merkel, he has been under pressure from the German president to find a compromise with the Conservatives and avoid the need for fresh elections.

“One thing is for sure, she, Angel Merkel will lead the next government, no matter if it’s a grand coalition again or perhaps a minority government,” Spahn told CNBC.

He believes that coalition talks with the Socialists could start next week, if the party members decide that direction, but these won’t be finalized until the end of February or even the start of March.

“I hope we can start next week, with small talks with some party leaders, (but) then there’s Christmas,” he said, “so I guess in January we will have the biggest part of the talks of the negotiations, then the SPD will want to ask their members, so that needs two to three weeks, so I think it will be end of February or even March before we know that there is a new coalition for Germany.”