Friedrich Merz, the front-runner to become Germany’s next chancellor, relied on votes from the far-right AfD to push an anti-migration motion through parliament.

Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel has issued rare public criticism of her successor as the country’s center-right leader, the front-runner in Germany’s election next month, for putting to parliament proposals for tough new migration rules that only passed with the help of a far-right party.

Support for Germany's conservative bloc fell by three points in the days after its chancellor candidate said he would push through a migration crackdown with the backing of the far right, in a survey published four weeks before a federal election.