Europe live: Germany’s SPD set to reveal coalition agreement vote deal

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Swedish police arrest Uppsala shooting suspect

Elsewhere, Swedish police said they have apprehended a suspect after a shooting in which three people were killed in the city of Uppsala on Tuesday, Reuters reported.

Police officers cordon off the scene after several people were killed in a shooting at Vaksala Square in central Uppsala, Sweden.
Police officers cordon off the scene after several people were killed in a shooting at Vaksala Square in central Uppsala, Sweden. Photograph: Fredrik Sandberg/TT NEWS AGENCY/AFP/Getty Images

A large area was cordoned off in the centre of Uppsala, a university city 45 miles north of Stockholm, after witnesses described hearing multiple shots at about 5pm local time and seeing people running in different directions and hiding.

A masked person was seen fleeing the crime scene on an electric scooter.

Morning opening: Is this a Ja, SPD?

Jakub Krupa

Jakub Krupa

Germany could see its next government all but confirmed today, as the Social Democrats (SPD) are set to confirm how its 358,000 members voted on the coalition agreement with the conservative CDU/CSU.

Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting and leader of the Christian Democratic Union party (CDU) Friedrich Merz and co-leader of the Social Democratic party (SPD) Lars Klingbeil attend a press conference after reaching an agreement on their coalition government in Berlin, Germany, 9 April 2025.
Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting and leader of the Christian Democratic Union party (CDU) Friedrich Merz and co-leader of the Social Democratic party (SPD) Lars Klingbeil attend a press conference after reaching an agreement on their coalition government in Berlin, Germany, 9 April 2025. Photograph: Annegret Hilse/Reuters

The vote closed just before midnight, and the announcement is expected around 10.30am Berlin time.

If the deal is approved, it will be formally signed on Monday, paving the way for Friedrich Merz to be elected chancellor the next day.

Speaking at the summit of centre-right European People’s Party congress in Valencia yesterday, Merz appeared very confident about the outcome of the vote as he promised “more German leadership than we have seen in the last years.”

In a wide-ranging speech, he promised to “invest a lot of energy into moving Europe forward,” saying that “the challenges we are faced with, surpass our ability to deal with them alone on a national level.”

“This … is … the hour of Europe, or more precisely, the European Union,” he declared.

German chancellor-in-waiting and leader of the Christian Democratic Union party (CDU), Friedrich Merz delivers a speech during the European People’s Party (EPP) congress in Valencia.
German chancellor-in-waiting and leader of the Christian Democratic Union party (CDU), Friedrich Merz delivers a speech during the European People’s Party (EPP) congress in Valencia. Photograph: José Jordan/AFP/Getty Images

Outlining his plans for Germany and Europe, Merz pledged to “stand even more strongly” for values of sovereignty, freedom and democracy by supporting Ukraine, and warned about Donald Trump’s policies “putting our transatlantic alliance to a test” by “threatening to plunge the world into a new age of protectionism.”

Merz publicly backed the current European Commission, but also vowed to “pledge regulation on all levels,” pointing to fixed bottle caps and new safety rules for cars as irritants for many Europeans.

Do we really [want to] make the EU more unpopular with such kinds of regulation? … Let’s not destroy popular [support] for our great European Union and our great European project with such nonsense,” he said.

I will bring you all the latest throughout the day on the outcome of the SPD vote, but also with more updates from Spain and Portugal as they reel off the blackout on Monday, from Greenland where the Danish king continues his formal visit amid Trump’s interest, and across the continent.

It’s Wednesday, 30 April 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.

Good morning.

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