Friedrich Merz, the favourite to become Germany’s next chancellor, said on Monday that he is ready to lead the country as his conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) assembled in Berlin for a party conference weeks ahead of national elections.

“We are ready to lead Germany forward again,” said Merz, pledging to “get to work without delay and tackle the root causes of the problems that have paralysed [Germany] for so long.”

Merz said his CDU/CSU alliance, which is leading in the polls on around 30%, has a “Plan for Germany.”

The 69-year-old received thunderous applause from delegates at the party conference.

The CDU is set to agree on an “immediate action programme” at the conference, including measures on reforming migration laws and boosting Germany’s struggling economy.

Merz’s party has received huge criticism in recent days after passing a motion in the Bundestag, Germany’s lower house of parliament, with votes from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD).

Chancellor Olaf Scholz further attacked the CDU/CSU on Monday, arguing that the centre-right bloc has failed to agree to legislation reforming asylum laws and granting security services additional powers.

The CDU/CSU is “endangering internal security,” Scholz said in Brussels at a summit of EU leaders.

“These laws restricting illegal migration and improving internal security must be approved before the election,” he added.

|DPA