Kickl announces a hot autumn: FPÖ is planning a Corona investigation offensive!

Kickl announces a hot autumn: FPÖ is planning a Corona investigation offensive!

In an urgent call, Herbert Kickl, the head of the FPÖ, called for a “hot political autumn” in parliament. This happened after a retreat by the liberal parliamentary club in St. Lambrecht Abbey in Styria. Kickl is also planning a big tour through the federal states to talk to the population. This tour will begin immediately after the federal party conference on September 27th in Salzburg, where he is running for re-election, and end on the national holiday, October 26th.

One of Kickl's central concerns is coming to terms with the government's Corona policy. He criticizes this policy as “cruel and lacking in evidence” and is increasing the pressure through a series of parliamentary questions and a planned committee of inquiry into the death of the lawyer Christian Pilnacek. In addition, five years after the start of the pandemic, the FPÖ will initiate a comprehensive analysis of the measures taken at the time through 827 parliamentary questions. This “major parliamentary offensive” is intended to shed light on all regulations issued during the pandemic and the financial consequences of the Corona measures.

Scope of parliamentary questions

The inquiries are structured in such a way that 203 are addressed to the Ministry of Health, 191 to the Federal Chancellery, 56 to the Ministry of Education, 24 to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, 23 to the Ministry of Finance as well as further inquiries to various ministries and the President of the National Council. Kickl describes these inquiries as the first step in dealing with Corona and as the foundation for further measures. A planned committee of inquiry into the Ministry of the Interior could also deal with Corona issues and I don't know whether there will also be a separate Corona-U committee.

The FPÖ sees these initiatives as a reaction to the “biggest attack on fundamental rights and freedoms” of the Second Republic. Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) has complained about the high costs and effort involved in answering the inquiries, but Kickl counters this complaint by rejecting it as “fake news” and warning of possible dangerous developments for democracy.

Political and social dimensions of the Corona crisis

The Corona crisis has not only had health consequences, but also far-reaching political consequences. In many countries, including Austria, fundamental rights have been severely restricted, making a discussion about the proportionality of these measures necessary. Political scientist Suzanne Schüttemeyer highlights that the crisis calls into question the role of parliaments as discussion platforms and in some cases the decision-making processes have been significantly changed.

The current political developments regarding Corona policy in Austria are also in the context of global trends. In some countries, such as Hungary and Brazil, democratic rights have been further restricted, while in many other countries measures are subject to parliamentary review. This makes it clear that the corona pandemic can represent both a challenge and an opportunity for authoritarian systems.

As developments in Austria show, the FPÖ is relying on a comprehensive review of the Corona measures and is promoting an open dialogue with the population. The coming months promise to highlight both political tensions and intense discussion about the lessons learned from the pandemic.