Updated 2.50pm

Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives promised Germany more police, more homes and full employment within eight years, as they presented their programme on Monday for an election in which she will seek a fourth term in office.

With Europe's biggest economy growing robustly, Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), have made assurances that they will not raise taxes and will invest more.

As the countdown to the September 24 ballot continues, they hold a clear opinion poll lead over the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) but would still need to team up with another party to govern.

Today they added the goal of full employment - which they define as a jobless rate of less than 3 percent - by 2025 to their list of campaign pledges.

"We think we can do this," Merkel told a news conference with CSU leader Horst Seehofer convened to present the election programme.

Germany's jobless rate is currently at a post-reunification low of 5.5 percent, and a level of 3 percent has not been seen since the "Economic Miracle" boom of the mid-1970s.

The conservative parties also want to add 1.5 million homes during the next parliamentary term, and expand Germany's broadband network.

On foreign policy, Merkel said they want a 'Marshall Plan' with Africa.

They also said they are prepared to work with the new French government to develop the euro zone step by step, but oppose a mutualisation of debts.

The CDU/CSU are polling around 40 percent, some 16 percentage point ahead of the SPD, their current coalition partner.