Status: 16.11.2023, 13:24 PM
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Luc Frieden (M) and the head of the delegation of the Christian Socialists, Claude Wiseler. © Jean-Christophe Verhaegen/Service information et presse /dpa/Handout
Luxembourg gets a new government. At the helm is the Christian Social Luc Frieden as the future prime minister. His predecessor, Xavier Bettel, became Foreign Minister.
Luxembourg - Just over five weeks after the elections in Luxembourg, the new government led by the future Prime Minister Luc Frieden is in place. His Christian Social People's Party (CSV) has concluded a coalition agreement with the Democratic Party (DP) that strengthens Luxembourg for the future, Frieden said on Thursday after the signing of the agreement in Luxembourg. The new government in the EU's second-smallest country is due to be sworn in this Friday.
Outgoing Prime Minister Xavier Bettel (DP) will be Deputy Prime Minister and part of the new government as Foreign Minister. Bettel succeeds the Social Democrat Jean Asselborn, who was Foreign Minister of Luxembourg for a good 19 years. The new government will have 15 ministers instead of the current 17. Of these, the CSV provides eight and the DP seven. The committees of the two parties had given the green light for the new government alliance on Wednesday evening.
Thanks to common objectives, the two parties have agreed on a government programme that strengthens the economy, the climate and society as a whole, said the lawyer Frieden. He cited tax relief for citizens and the creation of more affordable housing as key points of the agreement. "Massive" investments should be made in renewable energies, and bureaucracy should be reduced, for example in the construction of wind turbines or cycle paths.
Frieden (60) announced better equipment for the police and the introduction of a municipal police force. Medical care should be improved by expanding outpatient treatment. In order to better reconcile family and career, parental leave should be made more flexible and childcare should be expanded, he said.
In the election on 8 October, the three-party coalition of Liberals, Greens and Social Democrats led by the liberal Bettel, which has been in power since the end of 2013, was voted out of office due to bitter losses for the Greens. The CSV emerged as the strongest party in the election, followed by the DP. The new alliance has a majority of 35 of the 60 seats in parliament.
This is "a solid majority" compared to previous years, Frieden said. This will allow the new government to implement its program solidly "with the great support of the majority". "I'm very optimistic about the coming years." Frieden announced a government statement in parliament next week.
The CSV, which has governed continuously in Luxembourg since 1945 with only a five-year interruption, failed to find a governing majority after the 2013 election with former prime minister and lead candidate Jean-Claude Juncker. Bettel had been prime minister of the country of around 2013,660 inhabitants since the end of 000. Dpa