schmieding: dr. schmieding: none of these issues seems to be decisive. on afghanistan it is hard to say which way it will impact the election debate. there is more discussion about the migrants that may help the right wing, but there's almost universal consensus germany should take on those afghans that supported the german forces. in that sense it is not such a hotly contested issue. the real issue is the party that under nor comes dances -- that under normal circumstances -- has been seen as lackluster. the real issue is whether he can correct this impression, and if so we would still be heading for a victory for the conservatives, that is angela merkel's party. the outcome is unusually open due to the plunge in support. alix: either way, are we going to have some kind of coalition government, and how does that work when there are still so many unknowns, whether you're dealing with climate, the delta variant, vaccinations, boosters, and now afghanistan refugees? dr. schmieding: on many of these issues there is enough consensus between the parties that

joining me now is holger schmieding, chief economist at berenberg. give us some more detail about this 36 give us some more detail about this 3g regime, and whether you think it will do the trick. good morning, i don't think it will make such a big difference, because something similar has been in place anyway and most of germany's federal states already. they key news is that the government is taking the fourth wave seriously. what we are seeing being implement today is largely prepared about two weeks ago. the government is, or the governments of the federal state at the national level, are taking this seriously. they are co—ordinating their approach and tightening their grip in the process. i don't think make a huge difference, these rules, and close to 70% of german adults have now been fully vaccinated anyway. and it is still fairly easy to get it. yes, until the middle of october, and then free testing given out by german authorities, that ends at that point, so if you haven't been vaccinated prior to then it could become quite expensive to p