FPÖ application for U-committee: Coalition sharply rejects request!

FPÖ application for U-committee: Coalition sharply rejects request!

On July 10, 2025, the FPÖ's U-Committee request was rejected in the Rules Committee, as [OTS](https://www.ots.at/presseaussenderung/OTS_20250710_OTS0008/hanger-fpoe-u- committee-verlangen-durchfallen) reported. ÖVP MP Andreas Hanger explained that the application was not constitutional. The coalition parties ÖVP, SPÖ and NEOS judged the request to be insufficiently constitutional and rejected it with a coalition majority as “completely inadmissible”.

Hanger appealed to the FPÖ to appeal to the Constitutional Court or to revise the subject of the investigation. The central requirements for such a subject of investigation are clear time limits and detailed, specific facts that must relate to completed federal enforcement processes. He criticized the FPÖ request as vague and vague, as it combined two different topics - the review of various Corona measures and the death of the former section leader Christian Pilnacek.

Legal opinions and criticism

The ÖVP bases its rejection on legal opinions from Christoph Bezemek and Mathis Fister, who doubt the legality of the application. Bezemek judged the subject of the investigation to be vague and indefinite, while Fister described the request as inadmissible because it does not meet the requirements of a “specific” or “completed” process, as [oe24](https://www.oe24.at/oesterreich/politik/u- committee-der-fpoe-wird-fall-fuer-den-vfgh/640192197) notes. Kai Jan Krainer from the SPÖ criticized the mixing of two different topics and pointed out the inadequacy of the application.

The Greens also expressed concerns and pointed out “some formal errors” in the application, but at the same time emphasized the importance of the right to control. Nikolaus Scherak from the NEOS said that he did not see the situation as clearly as the ÖVP and SPÖ, but was ultimately able to support the coalition decision.

The path to U-committees

As is generally the case in the National Council, it has the right to set up committees of inquiry. This is a crucial element of parliamentary control and occurs either by a minority decision or at the request of five MPs. The application must precisely state the subject of the investigation and refer to a specific, completed process in the area of ​​federal enforcement, as Parlament.gv.at makes clear. The FPÖ's request therefore did not comply with the legal requirements, which ultimately led to its rejection.

Finally, Hanger called on the FPÖ to legally improve its request and to submit a concrete proposal for live broadcasts from U-Committee meetings in order to optimize educational work.