Laughing Laschet damages his chances

The frontrunner in the race for the German chancellorship apologised after being caught on camera laughing and joking during a visit to a town devastated by the Rhineland floods. Armin Laschet, 60, who governs North Rhinewestphalia, one of the worst-hit states, has also been criticised for a tin-eared response to the disaster and a failure to take climate change seriously. In the past five days flooding has killed 154 people in Germany. The series of natural disasters poses a threat to Laschet’s hope of cruising to victory in the general election on September 26.