Scholz's election rivals outline right-wing vision for Germany 

BERLIN, Dec 17: Germany's conservative opposition, leading in the polls ahead of February 23 elections, on Tuesday outlined plans to shift the EU powerhouse firmly to the right on immigration, social and economic policy.

Friedrich Merz, head of the Christian Democrats (CDU), is currently tipped to replace Social Democrat Chancellor Olaf Scholz, whose term the conservatives have slammed as "three lost years" over the stuttering economy.

A day after Scholz lost a parliamentary confidence vote he called to pave the way for the early elections, Merz claimed that the chancellor had "lost the confidence of a majority of the population a long time ago".
Merz -- a rival of his party's more moderate ex-chancellor Angela Merkel -- has vowed to orchestrate a return to the CDU's right-wing roots as he competes against the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.    —AFP