A German parliamentary mediation committee failed on Wednesday to reach an agreement on ratifying a tax deal signed by the German government with Switzerland, a battle tinged by next year\'s federal election.
Chancellor Angela Merkel\'s coalition had approved the measure in the lower house, or Bundestag, to tax assets stashed by German citizens in Swiss bank accounts, but opposition-led states in the upper house, or Bundesrat, blocked the deal.
The mediation committee, made up of members of both houses, was trying to find common ground but the states led by the opposition Social Democrats (SPD) and Greens remained adamently opposed to any agreement.
The mediation committee said it rejected the tax deal by a 19-10 vote. Although widely expected, the defeat was a disappointment to Merkel, Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble and their Swiss counterparts, who had hoped it would end an ugly chapter of German-Swiss relations.
Chancellor Angela Merkel\'s coalition had approved the measure in the lower house, or Bundestag, to tax assets stashed by German citizens in Swiss bank accounts, but opposition-led states in the upper house, or Bundesrat, blocked the deal.
The mediation committee, made up of members of both houses, was trying to find common ground but the states led by the opposition Social Democrats (SPD) and Greens remained adamently opposed to any agreement.
The mediation committee said it rejected the tax deal by a 19-10 vote. Although widely expected, the defeat was a disappointment to Merkel, Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble and their Swiss counterparts, who had hoped it would end an ugly chapter of German-Swiss relations.