Franziska Giffey (SPD), Governing Mayor of Berlin, speaks alongside Klaus Lederer (Die Linke), Berlin Senator for Culture and Europe, and Bettina Jarasch (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen), Berlin Senator for the Environment, Urban Mobility, Consumer Protection and Climate Action.
© dpa
The Berlin Senate discusses the so-called government policy guidelines on Tuesday (Jan. 18, 2022).
The guidelines are based on the agreements reached by the SPD, the Green Party and the Left Party in the coalition agreement and define the common political goals of the three-party coalition for the Senate's new term. Berlin's Governing Mayor Franziska Giffey will then present the guidelines as part of a government statement at the next session of the House of Representatives on Thursday (Jan. 27). Berlin's state parliament must then approve them, which should be a formality given the red-green-red majority. All members of the Senate must adhere to the agreed guidelines.
The Corona pandemic will also once again be a subject of the Senate session on Tuesday. A decision to tighten the Coronavirus rules in Berlin was already passed last week. An FFP2 mask mandate on public transport and 2G-plus rules for the restaurant industry and cultural and sporting events, among other things, are already in effect since Saturday. In addition, new quarantine rules defined at the federal-state meeting already apply in Berlin. Nevertheless the Senate has yet to officially adjust the Infection Protection Ordinance at this point.