The agreement came after elections in October that saw Mr Juncker's centrist Christian Social People's party finish first. However, Xavier Bettel's centre-right Democratic Party, the Socialists and the Greens collectively picked up 32 of the parliament's 60 seats, giving them a parliamentary majority. Mr Bettel, a popular mayor of Luxembourg city, is set to be the new prime minister.
The coalition programme points to continuity in many areas. It pledges to maintain Luxembourg's opposition to a Europe-wide financial transactions tax and says a new government would work to reinforce the country's vibrant financial sector. The coalition programme echoes the current government's position on a key issue—the European Union is to crack down on bank secrecy and tax evasion by broadening the automatic exchange of information.
The coalition programme says a new government would cooperate on international tax transparency efforts but would only agree to additional EU rules on automatic exchange of bank data if other, non-EU leading financial centres do likewise.
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Luxembourg government press release (in French)
President van Rompuy congratulates Xavier Bettel, the new Prime Minister of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, 4.12.13
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