Kohl stresses his leadership, says he could defy polls

The German Chancellor, Dr Helmut Kohl, yesterday started the final, crucial phase of his fight for a record fifth term in office with a monster rally in the industrial city of Dortmund. But, as so often in this election campaign, the opposition Social Democrats (SPD) had a head start with rallies in Berlin, Munich and Bonn on Saturday.

Dr Kohl told 18,000 supporters in Dortmund's Westfallenhalle that, with five weeks to go before polling day, his Christian Democrats (CDU) could yet defy opinion poll predictions and win the election. "We can win, we want to win and we are going to win," he declared.

A poll published in today's edition of the weekly news magazine Der Spiegel shows the SPD lead widening to four points, with the support of 42 per cent of voters compared to 38 per cent for the CDU. Other polls put the SPD lead as high as ten per cent, indicating that the Chancellor's task is a formidable one.

Speaking against a giant backdrop bearing his party's campaign slogan, "World Class for Germany", Dr Kohl made much of his unrivalled status on the world stage and warned that a change of government could damage Germany's standing among its partners.

"In a world full of uncertainty, full of difficult decisions facing us all over the globe, it is important that Germany should be seen as a land of stability. I am very pleased to be able to say that we currently enjoy excellent relations with Washington, Paris and London on the one hand and Moscow on the other," he said.

There was a carnival atmosphere in Berlin's Gendarmen markt, an elegant 18th century square in the historic centre of the city, when the SPD candidate, Mr Gerhard Schroder, addressed supporters on Saturday morning. Heralded by a majestic fanfare and preceded by a flotilla of red flags, Mr Schroder made his way to the platform through an adoring crowd, smiling broadly and shaking hands as he went.

His message was upbeat, promising a better, fairer future for Germany under the Social Democrats but avoiding direct attacks on Dr Kohl.

Like President Clinton and Britain's Prime Minister, Mr Blair, Mr Schroder hopes to appeal to floating voters with a moderate, non-ideological approach.

Unlike the Chancellor, Mr Schroder has little to say about world affairs and prefers to focus on domestic issues such as unemployment, health and social welfare. Promising to reverse Dr Kohl's cuts in state benefits to the sick and the old, he became passionate on Saturday as he spoke of the injustice of reducing payments to war widows such as his own mother.

"We cannot stand by and watch while the government makes cuts that hit these poor old women who took part in the first phase of reconstruction after the war and who have nothing to live on except their pensions," he said.

"We are going to win because we have the better programme, the better people and a united SPD that is able to fight," he said.