Social welfare explosives: billion exceeds budget, coalition in crisis mode!

Social welfare explosives: billion exceeds budget, coalition in crisis mode!

Wien, Österreich - The expenditure for social assistance in Austria exceeded the billion border for the first time in 2023. According to kosmo , the costs amount to 1.102 billion euros, which corresponds to an increase of 13.4 percent. In 2022, these expenses were only 972 million euros, while in 2021 they were 966 million euros.

This continuous increase in social welfare expenditure has led to a heated discussion within the political coalition. In particular, the ÖVP integration minister Claudia Plakolm prefers to support the number of children, while the SPÖ social minister Korinna Schumann rejects an upper limit for benefits and instead favors benefits in kind.

social welfare needs and distribution of expenditure

in 2022 around 108,206 needs communities in Austria, including 15,463 single parents with minor children. It is particularly striking that 73 percent of social assistance and minimum security costs are incurred in the capital of Vienna, where the city transferred a total of 806 million euros. The proportion of recipients with Austrian citizenship was 41.3 percent.

The expenditure for social assistance in 2022 is 0.22 percent of gross domestic product, while this share increases to 0.23 percent in 2023. For 2024, an increase in social benefits by 4.6 percent and a cost increase in Vienna will also be forecast of more than 200 million euros.

A look at Germany

Compared to Austria, Germany also offers interesting insights into the social situation. As the BMAS are drawn up in Germany, the income and expenses of social security are demonstrated in Germany. In 2020, expenditure for social security systems was a total of 1,123 billion euros.

The expenses are spread over different categories, with the largest part for illness and age being spent. The social service rate has increased steadily since the 1970s and achieved a value of 33.4 percent in 2020 through the effects of Corona pandemic.