Merkel to appoint key party critic to cabinet

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has decided to give a cabinet role to an outspoken critic within her conservative party, as she looks to quell surging discontent in the right wing of the group, a senior party official said Sunday. Merkel is to name 37-year-old Jens Spahn as health minister in her new cabinet later Sunday, […]

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has decided to give a cabinet role to an outspoken critic within her conservative party, as she looks to quell surging discontent in the right wing of the group, a senior party official said Sunday.

Merkel is to name 37-year-old Jens Spahn as health minister in her new cabinet later Sunday, Saxony state leader Michael Kretschmer of Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party said, confirming media reports.

“It’s a good sign because he is a dedicated politician who has shown for years that he is acting in the interests of this country,” said Kretschmer, who belongs to the CDU’s right wing.

“He will certainly be a good health minister.”