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Government crisis: Is Austria facing new elections or an agreement?
On February 9, 2025, experts will discuss the messy government situation and financial restructuring strategies on ORF 2.
Government crisis: Is Austria facing new elections or an agreement?
The political situation in Austria is simmering: never before has there been such a fierce struggle for a new government. The parties are irreconcilable, with coalition talks between the ÖVP and the NEOS having stalled. Susanne Schnabl will discuss on Sunday, February 9, 2025, at 10:10 p.m. in “The Conversation” on ORF 2 and ORF ON, with Werner Kogler from the Greens and Andreas Babler from the SPÖ sitting at the table, among others. The focus of the discussion will be on the negotiations and the question of whether politicians are able to find a workable compromise or whether new elections will be inevitable, as the APA-OTS reported.
Budget crisis and austerity measures
The central issues of the current negotiations are the budget and the necessary fiscal consolidation, which is proving to be extremely complicated. There is agreement that a restructuring should not take place within four years, but over seven years in order to cope with the savings of over 18 billion euros. The discussions revealed that the ÖVP and NEOS are against new taxes, while the SPÖ vehemently advocates wealth and inheritance taxes. Experts have long recommended property tax reform as a possible compromise. The VAT increase was also discussed, with consumers being affected by this regulation orf.at reported.
Another point of contention is the reform of the pension system. The NEOS are calling for a gradual increase in the statutory retirement age from 65 to 67 between 2034 and 2040. This issue could complicate negotiations, especially since both the ÖVP and SPÖ have a large number of pensioners in the electorate who are hoping for an agreement without the NEOS. In addition, the question of a far-reaching federalism reform remains in limbo, as all parties debate the sovereignty of income and expenditure, which meets with little approval from the ÖVP and SPÖ. Time is of the essence and the common position could be crucial to avoid a haphazard transition to new elections.