‘Iron Frau’ is an economic reformer who must share power

ANGELA MERKEL, set to become Germany’s first female chancellor, campaigned on promises to shake up Germany’s welfare state and the worker protections that have helped choke economic growth.

But the pioneering Protestant minister's daughter who grew up in communist East Germany won't have a free hand to implement her policies after failing to convince voters to give her a centre-right majority in the September 18 election.

Instead, she must share power with outgoing Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's Social Democrats, who are likely to resist trimming labour union influence.