German coalition lands reform package after night‑session

After an eight‑hour night meeting in the Chancellery, the CDU/CSU and SPD leaders announced a comprehensive reform package. The agreement covers an income‑tax reform intended to relieve low‑ and middle‑income earners from 2027, a pension overhaul based on the government commission’s proposals, labour‑market changes including a shift from daily to weekly maximum working hours, and measures to cut bureaucracy and boost growth. The coalition also decided to scrap the controversially‑adopted election‑law change that prevented some direct constituency winners from entering the Bundestag. The details will be presented at 09:00 GMT on Thursday in the garden of the German Chancellery. The package aims to strengthen Germany’s competitiveness, support private consumption and industrial investment, while the parties continue debating the financing of the tax cuts, especially the higher rates for high earners and inheritance tax.