Support for Merkel coalition slumps

German chancellor Angela Merkel's centre-right coalition slumped in a new poll after a dismal week for it marked by an unpopular…

German chancellor Angela Merkel's centre-right coalition slumped in a new poll after a dismal week for it marked by an unpopular decision on tax cuts and a secretive deal to sell tanks to Saudi Arabia.

The closely watched weekly poll by the Forsa institute for Stern magazine found Ms Merkel's conservative Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) lost 2 percentage points to 31 per cent, while their Free Democratic partners (FDP) dropped 1 point to 4 per cent.

The centre-left opposition Social Democrats (SPD) gained a point to 24 per cent, while their preferred coalition partners, the Greens, were steady at 23 per cent. At 47 percentage points, they opened a 12-point lead over the ruling coalition, two years before the next expected election.

The poll surveyed 2,504 voters between July 4th and 8th and had a two point margin of error.

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Ms Merkel's coalition has trailed the SPD and Greens in polls most of the past two years since taking power. Her coalition has been hurt by tensions between the conservatives and FDP.

The FDP had pushed tirelessly for tax cuts, as it promised in the last election, although 70 per cent of voters say debt reduction is more important.

The FDP finally got its wish last week when Ms Merkel's party caved into pressure from its partners and agreed to tax cuts in 2013 before the next election set for that year.

"The coalition is making one blunder after another when it comes to the tax issue," said Forsa managing director Manfred Guellner. He told Stern the overwhelming majority of Germans did not want tax cuts.

Mr Guellner said Merkel appeared to have lost her ability to come up with answers for the issues facing the country.

"During the 2009 financial crisis, she was seen as the woman who took care of people's worries," he said. "But now they've got the sense that she's lost her touch for that."

Another source of embarrassment for Ms Merkel's government is reports its national security council has agreed to reverse its postwar stance restricting arms sales abroad and allow Saudia Arabia to acquire some 200 Leopard 2 tanks.

It was reported from Riyadh last week that Saudi security sources had confirmed a deal for the tanks, which fuelled a political debate after Der Spiegel magazine leaked details.

Germany has long barred exporters from selling weapons to countries in crisis areas as well as those with human rights problems or engaged in armed conflicts. The Middle East, with the exception of Israel, was long considered such a taboo area of tension.

Defence minister Thomas de Maiziere has called the issue a matter of national security and declined comment. Opposition parties have poured scorn on the government for allowing the sale and being so secretive about it.

The Forsa poll found 73 per cent of Germans opposed the sale of tanks to Saudi Arabia.