Austria creates a federal prosecutor: independence in focus!

Austria creates a federal prosecutor: independence in focus!

Dolomitenstadt, Österreich - On July 9, 2025, the Austrian federal government decided to introduce an independent federal prosecutor, which will act as the top issue in criminal proceedings. This step is part of a comprehensive reform policy project that is tailored to strengthening the independence of the judiciary and the exclusion of political influence. The previous practice, in which the Justice Minister led the Senior Supervision of Public Prosecutor, will be fundamentally changed.

The new public prosecutor will consist of an equal three -person body, the members of which are elected for a period of six years. The committee of the committee changes every two years. This structure is intended to ensure that the control of the state prosecutor's office by the parliament, although at the moment vaguely formulates, does not interfere with ongoing investigations. A specific draft law to implement the reform is still pending. It is planned that the adjustments are developed as part of a separate Ministerial Council.

Reform goals and composition

The reform has the clear goal of eliminating a possible combination of politics and judiciary. The new development of the state prosecutor's office stipulates that the members of the committee who act as the highest supervisory authority must be prosecutors or judges with at least ten years of experience in criminal law. The nomination of these candidates is to be made through a commission set up in the Ministry of Justice, and the final appointment is the responsibility of the Federal President at the proposal of the National Council.

The current Minister of Justice, Anna Sporrer, stated that she will probably be the last minister that can issue instructions to the public prosecutor. This reform comes in a context in which investigations against politicians have been conducted several times in recent years. This has re -sparked the discussion about the proximity of the judiciary and politics.

support and resistance

A two -thirds majority in parliament is required for the acceptance of the reform. A broad support is expected by the current three-party coalition consisting of the ÖVP, SPÖ and NEOS as well as the Greens. In contrast, the right -wing populist FPÖ has already announced that it will reject the project. It remains to be seen how the debate about the new state prosecutor will develop and what further steps to implement the reform.

The introduction of the state prosecutor is considered a decisive progress for the independence of the judiciary in Austria and could create a clear separation between political influences and legal practice in the long term. So far, the hierarchy of the public prosecutors has led to information to the Ministry of Justice, which should no longer be the case in the new structure. This could significantly increase the integrity and efficiency of law enforcement.

The decision to reform was made on Wednesday as part of a Council of Ministers, and the entire political discourse on this topic will continue to be pursued, as is also being carried out by Meinverzirk and [Deutschlandfunk] (https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/ government-einigt-sich-auf- Bundesanwallung-100.html) reports. It should be noted that with the creation of the federal prosecutor an important step in the direction of a reformed and independent judiciary in Austria was carried out.