German centre-right CSU to campaign on asylum cap, military draft

By Magdalena Henkel, dpa I Saturday, October 12, 2024

 

BERLIN – Looking to lure disillusioned voters away from Germany’s political mid-ground and the ascendant far-right AfD party, the centre-right Christian Social Union (CSU) on Saturday adopted a raft of hot button issues into its 2025 national election platform, topped by a limit on asylum seekers.

At its annual conference in the southern city of Augsburg, the CSU, the Bavarian sister party of the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), adopted several key motions. These include an upper limit of well under 100,000 asylum applications per year and a fundamental reform of asylum law. Last year, more than 300,000 asylum applications were registered in Germany.

“The security of citizens and the end of illegal migration must be the top priority for the federal government,” the motion states.

“Our hospitality must not be exploited and become a breeding ground for imported conflicts, violence, organized crime and hatred against our way of life.”

In some German cities, people “sometimes no longer feel at home,” it continued, warning that “we are in over our heads, the influx is too much and can no longer be managed.”

Separately, the CSU will also campaign for the reintroduction of compulsory military service, the creation of a “drone army” and a “cyber brigade” for the military, as well as an increase in defence spending to 3% of GDP, well above the country’s current 2% target.

The party also seeks a “genuine economic turnaround,” calling for tax cuts and further relief as well as a comprehensive reduction in bureaucracy.

Rejecting a four-day week, the CSU is looking to make overtime tax-free, increase the commuter allowance and replace the maximum daily working hours with a maximum weekly working time.

The CDU/CSU bloc aims to oust Germany’s current coalition government, made up of the Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens and the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), in the federal election on September 28, 2025.

The CSU gave its support for CDU party leader Friedrich Merz as the alliance’s candidate for chancellor in September, following the endorsement of Bavaria’s CSU state premier Markus Söder, who had been seen as a potential rival to Merz.

While the CSU has governed Bavaria – either alone or in coalition – since 1957, the CDU/CSU bloc has been repeatedly challenged for the national leadership by the SPD, the party of Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

However, the current deeply unpopular coalition government led by the SPD has been plagued by in-fighting for months. Polls suggest that the conservative bloc is well-placed to come first in next year’s elections.

Much of its support could come from voters who while being opposed to the current levels of immigration, among other issues, are not willing to vote for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).