another so self that pushed for the social democrats to join forces with the conservatives once again but many critics both inside and outside of the social democrats party have said that rejoining forces with the conservatives once again is one of the social democrats biggest downfalls it's not really given the party time and space to to maneuver and to redefine its profile which it was so keen to do after making those huge losses back in the 2017 national elections and now we've seen the result of what that means again what last weekend in the e.u. elections the s.p.d. suffered all time lows walking away with just under 16 percent and of course which is a bad numbers for any party let alone one that is currently part of a governing coalition so just how long this government can survive will have to see the coalition has agreed to do some temperature taken by the end of the give that's actually part of the coalition deal whether we'll even get that far we'll have to see but this is certainly sent tremors through the government once again brady and holmes brown thank you both very much. now to some of the other stories making news around the world china

made i worked together with her for many years both as a journalist of labor and social affairs and also show democrats party leader parliamentary group leader i always worked with her on the basis of trust and everything she said was completely reliable. she is a social democrat through and through that can certainly be said but i also think she's a decent person. for dinner and of course i respect the decision you know that the social democratic party will have to make in terms of a successor for under the analysis but despite that i would like to speak on behalf of the government i am say that we will press on me with the work of governing this country with all of the seriousness that this job entails and with a great awareness of the responsibility ribera because the issues we need to address are clear. both in the federal public and germany here at home and in europe and in the world if you look at the situation generally and in this spirit we will continue to do our work thank you very much. and for more analysis i'm joined by d.w. correspondent who's outside the social democrats headquarters in berlin

who's been looking into the story for us give us an idea of why voters are turning away from social democratic parties across europe what is happening here of us a clear loss of confidence of the voters parties including the social democrats 1st this loss of confidence. the politicians themselves as if themselves as it's clear to decay in fresh. as for example where a social democracy was in power was hostile and then which dramatically collapsed afterwards and the 2nd point is that for a lot of voters they were left unsatisfied because there were too much there was too much compromise made by social democracies to get into government and german germany in that regard is a case study of a left leaning party veering towards a center right so as to enter a government we see currently in germany with the america and so-called grand coalition between the conservatives and social democrats of those 2 factors explain why voters left unsatisfied just voting a photo social democrats and if you take for example denmark we mentioned it earlier social democrats there are viewing even further right and they adopt

the party leader of the social democrats. and formed me this morning about her plan to resign as social democrat party leader and parliamentary group leader. i have a great deal of respect for the decision she has made i would like to express my gratitude. for our good cooperation so 5 always experienced during the coalition negotiations and as party leader of the social democrats as a person with a strong character and an honest and reliable partner. for hours working on the assumption that the social democrats will quickly make a person that will relate decisions and ensure that the grand coalition remains. capable of acting for the c.d.u. it remains clear that this is not a time for party tactics we remain committed to the grand coalition with good policy we aim to serve our country if you do you will contribute to the reliability and capacity of germany to act the grand coalition for us is not a means in itself the coalition agreement forms the basis for setting the political course of germany and representing german and t

i think my party, the social democrats, are doing fine. have, also with immigration, seriously. and, i mean, if you look out in europe you can see right—wing parties moving forward and we have seen that in denmark as well and we would not like to have that. so we take people's concerns seriously. i want to know what sine thinks about the prospects of the far right in the forthcoming elections. people like rasmus paludan. how realistic is it that he would get elected, though? he's 50—50, i will say. and what does that say about denmark as a society for someone like him to have a 50—50 chance of getting elected? i think it's a very bad situation for denmark and very shameful as well. freedom of speech only really matters if you do something that really, really offends people. why would you do it to provoke them so much... you have to give me time to answer, 0k. i didn't know for certain... the video of me talking to rasmus paludan has now become a part of his campaign. he's uploaded it on youtube and it's been snowballing and it's had thousan

the party leader of the social democrats. and formed me this morning about her plan to resign as social democrat party leader and parliamentary group leader try it to me i have a great deal of respect for the decision she has made i would like to express my gratitude under a analysis for our good cooperation so far i've always experienced during the coalition negotiations and as party leader of the social democrats as a person with a strong character and an honest and reliable partner. i am working on the assumption that the social democrats will quickly make personnel related decisions and ensure that the grand coalition remains. capable of acting for the c.d.u. it remains clear that this is not the time for party tactics we remain committed to the grand coalition with good policy we aim to serve our country if you do you will contribute to the reliability and capacity of germany to act the grand coalition for us is not a means in itself the coalition agreement forms the basis for setting the political course of germany and r

junior coalition partner quit without warning on sunday andrea nala stepped down after her social democrat party's disaster is showing in recent european elections but also after being criticized for her performance as party leader merkel says that she will push ahead with the coalition but others are not so sure it will survive. after year in the top job with the s.p.d. and to know this as she is standing down because she feels she can't go on. discussions in the parliamentary group and feedback from the party have shown that i no longer have the necessary support to carry out my judi's on monday i will therefore resign as chair of the s.p.d. and on tuesday i will resign as chair of the s.p.d. parliamentary group nala says resignation follows a party's dismal performance in last month's european elections its worst ever showing at the polls there given city vivisected results that we have so far are extremely disappointing for the s.p.d. everyone knows that the surveys regarding our party have not been good in the last . you know our task was to try and work our way out of these poor survey resul

elections and so right now of course this is yet another the decision of nonis the social democrat party leader is yet another blow to this coalition of course that really brings into question the credibility of the social democrats they don't really know where they stand for themselves so it does beg the question how if you don't know exactly how and where you stand as a party yourself why do you position yourself within a coalition and of course that is something that the social democrats have suffered from in previous coalitions with merkel's conservatives as well where they've lost a lot of credit for some of their main proposals and main bills that has all gone to in the favor of really of angela merkel and her conservatives whether that's about the minimum wage. equal rights the equal marriage rights ory. and so this is really going to have an effect on that coalition exactly to what extent will have to say but of course as you mentioned just before some of the criticism that we were hearing about this decision of this is to stand down a social democrat party leader that really isn

leader of her junior coalition partner resigned and their knowledge stepped down after her social democrat party's disastrous showing in the recent european elections america has stressed she's committed to sticking with the coalition social democrats for their part are now trying to find a new leader or leaders. after the upheaval of their party leaders resignation it was time for germany social democrats to put on the brakes on monday time to stop rethink and decide exactly what kind of social democratic party the s.p.d. wants to be a trio of leaders has temporarily taken charge of the party is neither panic stricken nor without leadership it's our task to make clear that we're leading this party and that there will be new roads ahead after just faulty months in the job and dry analysis left on monday but not without to go by commission. i've just said goodbye to the s.p.d. party executive committee. so we're going to have resigned. and i also wanted to personally thank you for years of good teamwork. you've spent many many hours here in the house thank you for that take a novice's resignation h

german politics has been clinched into crisis after the of the headignation of germany's social democratic partyn the coalition government. two rulingstabilizes parties already on shaky ground after painful losses in the european election. thela merkel, the head of democrats, vows to keep the ground coalition together. wilill continue the work of the government with all seriousness and above all, with a great sense of responsibility because the topics we have to solve are on the table. >> the social democratic party hemorrhage devotes in last month's european parliament election, falling to third behind merkel's party and the greens. it is the lowest it has ever been at only 12% according to the latest opinion poll. in a statement, the leader said discussions within the parliament to regroup about feedback from the party has made it clear there was no longer support for her in holding the role. urged thehecessor party to fill l its leadership - a its leadership quickly. -- leaving the government in danger of collapse. germany's far right party is waiting in the wings. leaves, germany will be for

sundry analysis 1st joined the social democratic party more than 20 years ago as the leader of the party's youth organization she studied german and political science in one of her very 1st interviews she told g.w. that a career in politics was not in the cards. for you but i don't want to stay in politics for the rest of my life so after being chair i want to look for a real job and for that i need a good degree. but after finishing university 4 years later now it's rose in the ranks of the s.p.d. 1st as a parliamentarian then labor minister and ultimately party leader germany's minimum wage law 1st introduced in 2015 was one of her key achievements now as has a reputation for being outspoken after her rousing speech at an s.p.d. convention party members agree to change course and form a coalition with angela merkel's conservatives rather than enter the opposition. hands on i think we're going to negotiate and get some more good results that's why voting yes today is worth it. now as was the party's 1st female leader since it was founded more than 150 years ago she was tasked with steerin

took another beating today the leader of its junior partner the social democrats an ounce of her resignation leaving the future of both the party and germany's government in doubt the social democrats and merkel conservatives were once the country's 2 biggest parties lately they have been plunging in opinion polls but merkel's promise to keep on with the task of governing. after a year in the top job with the s.p.d. 100 now this she's standing down because she feels she can't go on. discussions in the parliamentary group and feedback from the party have shown that i no longer have the necessary support to carry out my duties on monday i will therefore resign as chair of the s.p.d. and on tuesday i will resign as chair of the s.p.d. parliamentary group nala says resignation follows the party's dismal performance in last month's european elections its worst ever showing at the polls given city vivisected results that we have so far are extremely disappointing for the s.p.d. everyone knows that the surveys regarding our party have not been good in the last . our task was to try and work our way out of these poor survey results sad

took another beating today the leader of its junior partner the social democrats an ounce of her resignation leaving the future of both the party and germany's government in doubt the social democrats and merkel conservatives were once the country's 2 biggest parties lately their faint plunging in opinion polls but merkel's promise to keep on with the task of governing. after a year in the top job with the s.p.d. andrea now this she's standing down because she feels she can't go on. discussions in the parliamentary group and feedback from the party have shown that i no longer have the necessary support to carry out my duties on monday i will therefore resign as chair of the s.p.d. and on tuesday i will resign as chair of the s.p.d. parliamentary group nala says resignation follows a party's dismal performance in last month's european elections its worst ever showing at the polls in city view to see the results that we have so far are extremely disappointing for the s.p.d. everyone knows that the surveys regarding our party have not been good in the last . you know our task was to try and work our way out of these poor survey re

a centrist parties so the mentions not only something that's effect in the social democrats slightly more to the left of this and but also the conservatives on the right we've seen across europe these 2 parties are 2 for factions ready moving towards the center of the political spectrum for a long time now sorry a lot of personality crises going on here in europe right now. political correspondent kate brady thank you so much. now it's june a time when many l.g.b. t. people around the globe hold pride events to call attention to their communities but for older people aging can pose particular challenges manila's golden gays are a group of gay men in drag queens in their sixty's and beyond rejected by wider society and limited to low paid jobs many face homelessness and poverty in their old age u.w. is on a santos reports. there are days when river of fog was a dazzling beauty queen decked in glittery make up sparkling jewellery and sequinned gallants days when relives out her inner diva as beyond say. rain is a member of the golden gate a group of jolly flamboyant gay senior

took another bating today the later of its junior partner the social democrats an ounce to resignation leaving the future of both the party and germany's government in doubt the social democrats and merkel conservatives were once the country's 2 biggest parties lately their faint plunging in opinion polls but merkel's promise to keep on with the task of governing. it was a bad day for germany's grand coalition i'm sure your knowledge the s.p.d.m. 1st female leader in the party's 150 plus year history and now she's stepping down as its leader she held the post for just 14 months her resignation comes after her party's dismal performance in recent european parliamentary elections the s.p.d. lost almost half its seats. they did miss it even to see the results that we have so far are extremely disappointing for the s.p.d. everyone knows that the surveys regarding our party have not been good in the last . our task was to try and work our way out of these poor survey results sadly despite all our work we didn't manage to swing things around towards the list alone doesn't surprise. the s.p.d. was once a big tent party but after

took another beating today the leader of its junior partner the social democrats and alst her resignation leaving the future of both the party and germany's government in doubt the social democrats and local conservatives were once the country's 2 biggest parties lately they have been plunging in opinion polls but promised to keep on with the task of governing. after a year in the top job at the s.p.d. andrea now this she is standing down because she feels she can't go on. discussions in the parliamentary group and feedback from the party have shown that i no longer have the necessary support to carry out my judi's on monday i will therefore resign as chair of the s.p.d. and on tuesday i will resign as chair of the s.p.d. parliamentary group nala says resignation follows the party's dismal performance in last month's european elections its worst ever showing at the polls in city view to see the results that we have so far are extremely disappointing for the s.p.d. everyone knows that the surveys regarding our party have not been good in the last . go our task was to try and work our way out of these poor survey results sadly

you have a more classic version and you have social democratic parties among them. the danish social democratic party in fact breaking free, seeking new ground -- breaking new ground. maybe momoving a little bit to e left on wewelfare policy but the going steeeeply to the rigight n migration and value policy, justice policy, and that is really key to their success. one could say the mix between social democracy, classic anti-populism, centric populism, maybe, is whahat has handed them the power, but having said that, they have earned the power thanks to the supporting three parties. brent: what it sounds like we are seeing is the social democrats in denmark are still maintaining the left, also appropriating parts of the center right. what is thatat mean fofor partif the center-right? -- what does that mean for parties s of the center-righght >> right now, we see quite a disintegration among liberal and conservative parties in denmark. i mean a lot of different parties actually trying to get elected onon a right-wing ticke. riright now, it appears as if 11 parties in

social democrats here in germany and also in other parts of europe as well in last week's e.u. elections of course those results left the social democrats in. that currently the 3rd strongest party in germany they walked away with just under 16 percent of the vite that's a wreck old labor for the social democrats so this is certainly a direct response from that and as we saw there in the statement knowledge has taken this as a sign from vises and from of the party members that this is her time to go well with these very disappointing results i mean this is also quite a blow for knowledge as she was seen for a long time by many as the person who would give her party the s.p.d. a fresh start so what went wrong she really was seen as a bit of a hope to move the s.p.d. forward but of course there was also a lot of criticism at the time that she wouldn't move the social democrats far enough away from the sense of the geminis political spectrum and further back to the left and that's something that the s.p.d. the social democrats are still trying to grapple with is who are they who do they represent a posse but we can have a look now exactly who i'm sorry and alice was or is and what

coalition took another bating today the later of its junior partner the social democrats and else to resignation even the future of both the party and germany's government in doubt social democrats and merkel's conservatives were once the country's 2 biggest parties lightly as they were plunging in opinion polls but mogul has promised to keep on with the task of governing. after a year in the top job at the s.p.d. andrea now this says she's standing down because she feels she can't go on. discussions in the parliamentary group and feedback from the party have shown that i no longer have the necessary support to carry out my duty is on monday i will therefore resign as chair of the s.p.d. and on tuesday i will resign as chair of the s.p.d. parliamentary group nala says resignation follows the party's dismal performance in last month's european elections its worst ever showing at the polls here given city vivisect the results that we have so far are extremely disappointing for the s.p.d. everyone knows that the surveys regarding our party have not been good in the last . our task was to try and work our way out of these poor surve

we're back again we've had this conversation so many times about how the social democrats are going to be new and revitalized the party to win back that profile and they'll be a lot of people especially people who opposed the social democrats going back into another coalition with angle of michael's conservatives and will be no doubt a lot of people this morning pointing their finger and saying we told you so because this really has backfired there's a lot of issues here that need to be tackled in terms of why the s.p.d. has done so badly which consequently has led some. of resignation as well this morning well it's not only in germany that the central left parties have been struggling we saw again not only german the german social democratic party do poorly in the european parliamentary elections and other european countries as well the center left parties very disappointing results. are they facing a real crisis center left parties more broadly across europe they really always seen this pattern all across europe as you say and there really has been a loss of profile it in a lot of countries you love the traditional

the social democrats are trying to find a new leader or leaders. >> after the upheaval of their partyders resignation, it was time for germany's social democrats to put on the brakes on monday. time to stop, re-think and decide what kind of social democratic party the spd wants to be. a trio of leaders has taken charge. >> the party it -- is neither an extra can or without leadership. there will be new roads ahead. >> after just 14 months in the job, andrea nahles left on monday. >> hello. i just said goodbybye to the spd exexecutive party cocommittee. i have resigned. i also wanted to personally thank you for years of good teamwork. you have spent many hours here. thank you for that. take care. >> her resignation has consumed the german media. now, while the social democrats do their own self f search -- soul-searching, there's a bigger question on voters minds. how will the coalition government of the social democrats and chancellor merkel's conservatives continue? >> either it will be the end of a grand coalition if it continues, or they will change something and we will see what t

leader for junior coalition partner unexpectedly resigned under nala stepped down after a social democrat party's disastrous choice in the recent european elections michael says she will push ahead with the coalition but others are not so sure the social democrats for their part are now trying to find a new leader or leader. andre anonymous has left but not without saying goodbye heart shaped michiru i've just said goodbye to the s.p.d. party executive committee. so we're going to have resigned. and i also wanted to personally thank you for years of good teamwork. you've spent many many hours here in the valley plant house thank you for that take care. unduly anomalous his resignation as party leader and parliamentary party leader is the main focus of german news media as is the question how will the grand coalition of the s.p.d. and merkel c.d.u. continue. to go 5 it'll be the end of the grand coalition if it continues this way or they'll change something and then we'll see what the new plan is and then maybe. it's the end of the grand coalition it's going to be the s.p.d. the f.t.p. and the gre

different things you've got a more classical version of social democracy and then you've got social democratic parties among them the danish social democratic party in effect breaking free of little bit and seeking new ground to what extent was it in a social democrats is to maybe move a little bit to the left on a welfare policy but then go steeply to the right on a migration value policy justice policy and that's really the key to their success and one can say. the mix between sort of social democracy classic and populism. it's centric populist and maybe is what has handed them to power but having said that they have been the power thanks to the supporting 3 posses in the so-called red block and so what it sounds like we're seeing then is that the social democrats in denmark are still maintaining the left but also appropriating parts of the center right what does that mean then for the parties of the center right there the big losers are you. well right now we see a quite significant disintegrations among. liberal and conservative hotties in denmark and by disintegration i mean a lot of different pa

the social democrats kind of cloth their way back they've frederickson has pulled off kind of this with markable split between returning the party to its social democratic groups with an emphasis on social issues and at the same time taken an unusually tough stance for social democratic party on immigration and that cocktail is kind of won over more than a quarter of the voters the big loser is an asher to soon prime minister rasmussen . his party actually gained 4 points in part by painting himself to this kind of centrist statesmen and the bork against right wing populist the real loser is the last elections big winner and that's the national danish people's party the party has long dominated the immigration debate they've been calling for tougher sometimes outright discriminatory immigration and asylum policies particularly target muslims. and that we've seen so for them across kind of encroaching on their tour towards so they they seem appear to have lost some of their poll this time around so tell us peter i mean when we look just generally speaking at the population of denmark we're talking about less than 6000000 people h

in the short term this decision by andrea nihilist means the social democrats will have to find a new party leader and leader of the party in parliament but that's where their problems begin because the electoral position of this party is very poor they have lost 4 of the 5 major elections held in germany or across europe since the in august took the leadership and their opinion poll ratings are perhaps even worse still one poll this weekend puts the party down at 12 percent but is the worst rating the of the party has had in the polls since the opinion polls began in germany and then consider this thought that when the party decided to go into coalition government with the end of it with angle americal last year in march of last year many people said they thought that it was better to put germany's interests above party interests the problem is that. the opinion polls show that many people do not support this party and it has been losing votes hand over fist for many many years so when the leadership of this party is decided upon revenue policies the person who goes on to become leader wil

percent that is the worst poll rating that party has ever had and it gives you a sense of the dissatisfaction that there is in society with the social democrats the point to make here is that electorally this party is really has really has got the skates under it because if you look at the last 5 elections have taken place since and they're not us took the leadership of the party well the last 4 out of 5 of those elections the point to make here is that when the party agreed to go back into coalition a grand coalition with angela merkel's christian democrats there was a bitter debate within party in the party membership about whether it was the right thing or not to do at the time 2 thirds of party members voted to go into coalition saying that it was better to put germany's national interests ahead of the social democrats party interest but there were voices at the time that said no this is going to cause real difficulty for us in elections and so it has proved the question that social democrats will have to are not just about who is their leader what sort of policies do we want that leader to choose and to try to implement is whether they w

and there was certainly hopes that among the members of the social democrats that she would be able to move the party away from the center ground of germany's political spectrum where they've drifted towards joining that time in coalition with merkel's conservatives and really then redefine exactly what it is that the social democrats stand for and of course under analysis it seems has failed to fulfill those hopes and we can have a look now actually at a report we have here on. her political career. fund to be an honest 1st joined the democratic party more than 20 years ago as the leader of the party's youth organization. she studied german and political science in one of her very 1st interviews she told g w that a career in politics was not in the cards. shopping it for you but i don't want to stay in politics for the rest of my life so after being chair i want to look for a real job and for that i need a good degree. but after finishing university 4 years later now let's rose in the ranks of the s.p.d. 1st as a parliamentarian then labor minister and ultimately party leader germany's minimum wage

her social democrat party has won more than 26% of the vote.here's been no permanent memorial in normandy to the 22,000 troops under british command who died. but during today's ceremony, a sculpture will be inaugurated that'll eventually form part of a much larger memorial, now that permission for its construction has been granted. tim muffett went to meet one d—day veteran who's been raising money to go towards it. the sea was red with human blood. as an 18—year—old soldier, harry was amongst the first to learn on gold each on d—day. amongst the first to learn on gold each on d-day. i don't want anyone else to forget my mate really prayed full price stop now 93, harry's most recent mission has been to raise money. honouring the 22,000 troops under british command who died. he knows what a big memorial to the glorious did at omaha. they have got another one for the canadians, but we haven't had a memorial, which is sad, really. how much have you raised? £9,000. not bad for a silly old bloke like me. thank you very much. the money harry's in ra

resigned and 3 and knowledge stepped down today after her social democrat party's disastrous showing in last week's european elections the party is now trying to find a new leader or leaders for now they are going to stay in the coalition with chancer until americans conservatives but this might not last. earlier the double usually only for the hammerstein called up with senior s.p.d. lawmaker thomas oprah to find out whether his party might quit their coalition with chancellor merkel here's what he told. it's up a man is the s.p.d. still committed to the grand coalition the future of the grand coalition depends on its performance the performance was not very good so far and. if we will still have a grand coalition around christmas is open it depends on. the question whether we get a compromise on carbon tax on how to run a concept to fight global warming as well as a minimum pension for working people who have worked for 35 years and all these questions have to be answered in a very convincing way otherwise the grand coalition is not justified anymore. that was s.p.d. lawmaker told u

to have scored a became chancellor and the party went into freefall political scientist or norgate power has been documenting the history of the social democrats for decades. it is kind of folks but the s.p.d. is no longer a broad based party and it hasn't been one for a long time you can see from election results that the party still garners votes but not to the extent where you can say it's proof that the s.p.d. is represented in all the relevant groups of society. the s.p.d. germany's oldest pleasurable party was born over 150 years ago in times of harsh working conditions and massive social inequity. after coming to power in 1983 i don't pick lettuce or to push through the so-called enabling act but was tortured by the surreal democrats shortly afterwards the party was outlawed party loyalists were passed accuse it taken to concentration camps and killed. after the 2nd world war the s.p.d. reestablished itself to become the leading opposition voice to the conservatives. 3 social democrat leaders were crowned chancellor plant how much mitt and get hutch for. at the moment i don't see any prospect of an s.p.d. chancellor because there's no o

the head of the german social democrats is resigning after the party's dismal performance in last month'songer had the support she needed. the greens overtook the social democrats in the european vote, and opinion polls suggest the party has continued to haemorrhage support. ramzan karmali reports. andrea nahles, no longer the leader of the social democrat party in germany. she only took the helm of the sdp 14 germany. she only took the helm of the sdp14 months ago from martin shilts. like her predecessor, her demise has been triggered by poor election result. in a statement, ms nahles said that with after discussion with party members she no longer had necessary support to carry out her duties. the sdp is a junior partner in germany's coalition government with angela merkel‘s christian democrats. last year they trailed third hide the cdu and a resurgent green party. their 16% share of the vote was an all—time low. 16% share of the vote was an all-time low. despite this, ms nahles's resignation was a big surprise to her coalition part owners and political analysts. translation: of course

denmark's youngest ever prime minister after fighting the election on environmental issues — her social democrat partyre making the headlines in the media across the world. we begin with le figaro and the 75th d—day anniversary commemorations. the paper's headlines reads sixth june 1944 the morning of freedom. meanwhile, on the times front page, d—day veterans were given a standing ovation as the queen lead international tributes among other world leaders to those who took part in the normandy invasion. the guardian reports on us president donald trump who after attending the d—day commerations travelled to ireland and waded in controversy after likening the irish border issue with his own plannedwall at the us—mexico border. meanwhile, the south china morning post focusses on another anniversary, china's president xi jinping's three—day visit to russia to mark the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. bloomberg says millions of britons are facing financial hardship in old age. with the over—65s projected to account for a quarter of all people in the uk within the next 20

andrea nahles, no longer the leader of the social democrat party in germany.months ago from martin schulz. like her predecessor, her demise has been triggered by poor election result. in a statement, ms nahles said that with after discussion with party members she no longer had necessary support to carry out her duties. the sdp is a junior partner in germany's coalition government with angela merkel‘s christian democrats. last year they trailed third behind the cdu and a resurgent green party. their 16% share of the vote was an all—time low. despite this, ms nahles's resignation was a big surprise to her coalition partners and political analysts. translation: of course i also have respect for the decision the party must make in respect to the success of the sdp. regardless, i would like to say on behalf of the government we will continue the government's work with all seriousness. the centre—left sdp has been in coalition with the cdu since 2017 and that is due to last until 2021. but andrea nahles has been criticised by those from the left of her party for re