(Angus Reid Consultants - CPOD Global Scan) - The coalition of the Christian-Democratic Union (CSU) and the Bavarian Christian-Social Party (CSU) continues to command Germany's political scene, according to a poll by Forsa released by Stern and RTL. 44 per cent of respondents would vote for the alliance in the next federal election.

The governing Social Democratic Party (SPD) of chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is second with 31 per cent, followed by the Green Party (Grune), the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS).

The Greens are currently the SPD's coalition partner in the federal administration. Both parties have a combined support of 39 per cent, 12 per cent less than a prospective alliance between the Christian Democrats and the Free Democrats.

The government has been affected by Germany's highest jobless ratio since the 1930s. The country's unemployment rate was 12.6 per cent in January, meaning 5.2 million adults are looking for work.

On Mar. 18, Schroeder met with CSU leader Angela Merkel and CSU chief Edmund Stoiber to discuss new employment measures. The chancellor said the three "made a good step forward" at the talks. Merkel and Stoiber have supported Schroeder's call for a reduction on the corporate tax rate from 25 per cent to 19 per cent, provided the measure does not generate more state debt.

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