Government Defends Confidence Motion

The German government has delivered a detailed position paper on the vote of confidence held earlier this month to President Horst Köhler. In addition to a constitutional assessment of the vote, which Chancellor Gerhard Schröder deliberately lost, the paper also included documentation on the "difficulties of implementing government policy," government spokesman Bela Anda said on Wednesday. Köhler had asked for the position paper last week to assist him in his decision on whether the confidence vote on July 1 was constitutional or not. Should he decide it was constitutional, he will dissolve parliament and set a date for new general elections.