Parliament’s lower house voted 513-79, with eight abstentions, for the shutdown plan in Europe’s biggest economy. Most of the opposition voted in favour.
Thursday’s decision sets Germany on the road to an ambitious build-up of renewable energy. Environment Minister Norbert Roettgen tells lawmakers: “This will be good for our country, because we all stand together. So let’s get to work.”
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government performed an about-face after Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant was ravaged by an earthquake and tsunami in March.
(Published 30 June 2011, 16:52 IST)
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