Ben Mason

The German Greens might do so badly they end up getting in

From our UK edition

The German Green Party is having a torrid time. In an election campaign remarkable for static polls, come what may, the collapse of a third of the Green vote has been the most pronounced swing to be found. If in Sunday’s vote they do as poorly as it now looks like they will, this makes it

The SPD has no credible answer to Germany’s Iron Lady as polling day nears

From our UK edition

As symbolism goes, it borders on cliché. Running out of time to gain any serious traction, Germany’s Social Democrats last week unveiled their new campaign posters, and they promptly disintegrated on first contact with rain. The seven images neatly chronicle – or will do once they’re replaced – the profound failure of the main challengers

Why Angela Merkel doesn’t want a haircut

From our UK edition

The announcement by Angela Merkel last week that there would be no second haircut for Greece may have surprised some readers unfamiliar with financial jargon. But once you know that ‘haircut’ means a debt write-down, nothing could be less surprising. Not because it’s a preposterous idea – in fact it’s almost bound to happen – but because