ANGELA MERKEL CONFIRMED AS NEW GERMAN CHANCELLOR.

Germany will have its first female Chancellor after it was confirmed that Angela Merkel will take over from Gerhard Schroder in a grand coalition of CDU/CSU and SPD. Following weeks of negotiations between the two largest parties, Mrs Merkel said at a press conference in Berlin on October 10: "We have unanimously agreed we will start coalition negotiations with the SPD aimed at creating a grand coalition". The SPD is expected to get eight ministries - the foreign ministry, finance, justice, labour, environment, health, transport and development cooperation. The CDU/CSU is expected to have, in addition to providing the Chancellor, defence, the interior ministry, economy, family, education and research, and agriculture and consumer protection.

The President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso congratulated the two parties for "having achieved an agreement which provides a strong stable solution for the future German government". Mr Barroso said he was looking forward to working closely with Mrs Merkel whom he knew well. He continued that Germany was an "essential European partner" and he was...