Germany's Merkel warns sister party to toe line

AUGSBURG, Germany, Oct 13 (Reuters) Chancellor Angela Merkel warned her Christian Democrats' arch conservative Bavarian sister party today the two must pull together if the grand coalition government in Berlin is to succeed.

In a speech to a Christian Social Union (CSU) party congress in the Bavarian town of Augsburg, Merkel tried to put behind her the differences that divided the two conservative parties over healthcare reform with an appeal for more cooperation.

''We will only be successful if we keep our ranks closed -- and nothing less will do,'' said Merkel, whose government just avoided a crisis in early October with a face-saving compromise on healthcare reform that the CSU only reluctantly accepted.

''That's our strength,'' she said. ''We can't try to sell the public our reforms as if they are bad-tasting beer. We've got to turn the 'No, but...' into a 'Yes, but...'.'' Merkel's speech to the CSU and their leader, Bavarian state premier Edmund Stoiber, came as a poll by ZDF television published today showed two-thirds of Germans believe Merkel and Stoiber have a poor working relationship.

The ZDF Politbarometer poll found that only 24 per cent believe Merkel and Stoiber have a good working relationship with 67 saying it's poor.

That stands in stark contrast to the public's view of Merkel's ties to Kurt Beck, chairman of the centre-left Social Democrats that are the conservative's main rival even though they are partners in the right-left grand coalition.

The poll found 43 per cent believe Merkel and Beck have a good working relationship while 38 per cent said it was poor.

Stoiber, who lost the 2002 general election, has repeatedly criticised health reform proposals hammered out by the CDU and SPD in recent weeks, attacks that sent the CDU/CSU plunging to six-year lows in voter surveys below the 30-per cent level.

Stoiber, facing a state election in 2008, also saw his party's support in Bavaria fall sharply in recent weeks.

Reuters KD RS2341