Brandenburg: Minister Vogel resigns in protest against Woidke

After the dismissal of Brandenburg’s Health Minister Ursula Nonnemacher from the Green Party, Agriculture and Environment Minister Axel Vogel – also from the Green Party – resigned. The Greens and Vogel said they no longer saw a basis for trusting cooperation. Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke (SPD) fired Nonnemacher shortly before the end of his term in government in the dispute over hospital reform in the Federal Council.

The resignation is a consequence “of the Prime Minister’s disrespectful treatment of the previous Health Minister,” according to a statement from the Greens. Woidke had dismissed Nonnemacher from the Federal Council.

According to government spokesman Florian Engels, the head of government wanted to appeal to the mediation committee of the Federal Council and the Bundestag. The minister responsible for hospitals, Nonnemacher, warned of an end to the reform efforts. Because after the traffic lights went out, it would likely have been the case that there would no longer have been enough time until the new election for a mediation process. That would have meant the end of cold-blooded reform. After a new election, all unfinished legislative procedures in the Bundestag expire.

In the end, the reform went through the Federal Council without Brandenburg’s approval.

“In the past, the Prime Minister had already ignored agreements from the coalition agreement several times and not adhered to the agreed voting behavior,” said Vogel. “Today’s Federal Council meeting, in which the Prime Minister prevented the Health Minister from giving her speech by dismissing her, now marks a new low point. Against this background, cooperation is no longer possible.”

Brandenburg’s Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke, however, said he felt compelled to dismiss him. “I can’t let myself be fooled by this,” the SPD politician told the RTL and ntv channels in Berlin. On Wednesday, after a conference with representatives of hospitals, districts and municipalities, it was concluded that the planned reform urgently needed to be revised and that the mediation committee should be called.

“Ursula Nonnemacher was not ready for this,” Woidke continued to tell the broadcaster Phoenix. As Prime Minister, he “could not allow a clear vote that we also have in the country” to be counteracted in the Federal Council by a minister “who is entrusted with carrying out my tasks”. On the one hand, it is also common to abstain from the Bundesrat when coalition parties are at odds. On the other hand, the government was only in office on an executive basis.

The Greens said Vogel decided to take the step in consultation with the state executive board and declared his resignation to the Prime Minister. The SPD and BSW are currently negotiating a coalition. Green Party state leader Alexandra Pichl said: “I very much regret that the Prime Minister is giving up the long-standing, trusting cooperation, even though the state government is still in office.” The desired coalition with the BSW “is already casting its shadow,” she said.

Woidke is currently negotiating for the SPD with the BSW about forming a government. According to media reports, the two parties want to preserve the hospital locations in the state. However, the reform will probably be accompanied by the closure of clinics.