After being the first party to organise a digital congress last year, the DP repeated the operation on Monday evening, as the covid-19 crisis is still far from over. It was a chance to take stock internally, after a year of pandemic.

Prime minister Xavier Bettel welcomed the fact that the constraints on civil liberties were ultimately not too strong to control the epidemic, compared to other countries, and said he believes that the situation should improve if vaccine deliveries run as planned, with the 90,000 per week capacity to administer them being satisfactory.

The way out of the crisis was also the focus among the three speakers, including DP president Corinne Cahen and general secretary Claude Lamberty. In sight is also the constitution of an electoral programme for the 2023 deadlines, which include a variety of key themes: working methods, upset by the pandemic (with the even stronger emergence of teleworking and digitisation); housing, more than ever in a severe crisis; as well as support for businesses, which should not stop functioning in the medium-term future.

Committee elections

Unlike the CSV, there were no leadership-level elections on the agenda Monday night--only the steering committee and regional committees. While Carole Hartmann has been confirmed at the head of the eastern district, Daliah Scholl will replace Max Hahn in the south.

Also of note: while the Lëtzebuerger Journal has completed its migration to 100% digital this year, it is no longer the official newspaper of the party. 90.3% of the members voted for a reform of the statutes of the DP going in this direction.

This article was originally published in French on Paperjam and has been translated and edited for Delano.