Kogler criticizes savings plans: Unjust towards families and children!

Kogler criticizes savings plans: Unjust towards families and children!

The former Vice Chancellor and Club chairman of the Greens, Werner Kogler, has practiced sharp criticism in a current discussion on the government's budget policy. In an interview with ZIB 2 with ORF moderator Armin Wolf on Wednesday evening, Kogler expressed that the government's new budget plan had some positive aspects, but in all of the "blue-black budget". He paid special recognition for Finance Minister Markus Marterbauer for his "super" budget speech, but at the same time described him as a "clever scientist" and "constructive colleague", whose speech was "past the budget".

In his analysis, Kogler angrily criticized the government's measures, families with low incomes and many children affect the strongest. He described these austerity measures as "perverse" and "upside down". This affects the government's suspension of the valorization of social benefits, including the child's deduction, family allowance and child benefit. When asked whether he was the one who could prevent these measures, Kogler made it clear that the Greens always wanted to work constructively, but should not suspend the valorization of social benefits for low -income families. According to Puls24, the consolidation measures in Austria were laid down to 8.7 billion euros.

criticism of the government coalition

Kogler that the savings are perceived as unjust and environmentally harmful. He accused the ÖVP of breaking its election promises and announced that the Greens would denounce this in parliament. His concerns not only refer to the social incisions, but also to environmentally harmful subsidies such as the diesel privilege and the planned motorway expansion. In addition, Kogler warned of possible billions of bills that could threaten Austria should not be met.

In the discussion about budget consolidation, which required comprehensive savings for 2023 in the amount of 6.4 billion euros and for 2024 of 8.7 billion euros, Kogler defended the role of the Greens in the previous government as necessary in crisis management.
He thought it was indispensable not to continue burdening the already heavily stressed people. The climate bonus, which costs around four billion euros, would be correctly located in the budget, but, according to Kogler, it was "paid too high". In this context, he finally blamed the ÖVP for the anti -tablen payments.

Details on the savings package and the effects

Finance Minister Marterbauer recently presented the cornerstones of the double budget for 2025/26 and presented numerous savings measures. This includes the abolition of sales tax exemption for solar systems and the increase in electric cars by including the engine-related insurance tax. The burdens for the citizens are estimated at 1.24 billion euros for 2023 and 1.65 billion euros for 2026, as today.

• include the most important measures in the savings package:
• raising the bank levy
• Introduction of a new transfer surcharge
• increase in the foundation input tax from 2.5 to 3.5 percent
• raising the gambling levy

The child deduction should not be adapted to the inflation rate by 2027 and remains at 67.80 euros per child and month. This represents a particularly large incision for low -income families. Kogler realizes the need that everyone has to make a contribution to the renovation of the budget, but emphasizes that the most stressed people may not be punished.