German minister quits after death of stepdaughter and political attacks

German Labour Minister and SPD co-leader Bärbel Bas has resigned from her posts following the death of her stepdaughter and subsequent political harassment. Her departure adds further instability to Germany's fragile coalition government.
Why it matters
The resignation highlights the toxic nature of political discourse and creates a leadership vacuum in a key ministry during a period of economic reform.
Political attacks ‘continued to intensify during this difficult time for me personally’, Bärbel Bas said. Political attacks ‘continued to intensify during this difficult time for me personally’, Bärbel Bas said. Germany German minister quits after death of stepdaughter and political attacks Fragile coalition suffers another blow as labour minister and co-leader of SPD Bärbel Bas leaves both posts
Prefer the Guardian on Google Germany’s labour minister and co-leader of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), Bärbel Bas, has quit both posts, citing the death of her stepdaughter and subsequent political attacks against her, in a stinging blow to the fragile coalition government.
“After my stepdaughter’s death, I realised that I need time to come to terms with my grief,” Bas said in a statement posted on Facebook, without giving further details.
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