Political turbulence: Wallner calls for a change of course in Vienna!

Political turbulence: Wallner calls for a change of course in Vienna!

After the latest political turbulence in Vorarlberg, negotiations between the ÖVP and the SPÖ have found an abrupt end. Governor Markus Wallner (ÖVP) commented in writing and thanked his party colleague Chancellor Karl Nehammer for his efforts to form a stable government. However, Wallner made it clear that a cooperation with the SPÖ under the leadership of Andreas Babler was not possible in order to implement the necessary measures for location policy and budget consolidation. These developments were reported by ORF Vorarlberg on Saturday evening.

The SPÖ went on the offensive: State Chairman Mario Leit was surprised by the speed of the failure of the coalition negotiations. Despite a phone call on Friday, in which Wallner still spread optimism, the break in the conversations was obvious. Head blamed the ÖVP for failure, in particular because of an internal party pressure on Nehammer and the adherence to unpopular measures, such as salary cuts in the teaching and care sector as well as savings in the health sector. These radical steps were described as intolerable by the SPÖ representatives and led to the determination that the "red line was exceeded".

government constellation and criticism

The state government Wallner IV, which has been in office since November 2024, consists of a coalition of ÖVP and FPÖ. Despite the strong losses of the ÖVP in the state election in October 2024, she remained the strongest party, while the FPÖ benefited from the elections. The opposition has sharply criticized the government program and criticized the fact that it lacks ambitions and contains numerous backwards. Leading representatives, such as the state chairman of the Austrian Trade Union Confederation, described the program as "despondent" and "without perspective for further development". These developments and the associated incisions concern not only political stability, but also various social areas in Vorarlberg, as is clear in the reports of ORF Vorarlberg and further analysis.