Coalition Negotiations Continue Over the Weekend
On Friday, the coalition negotiations between the FPÖ and ÖVP continue with meetings of the subgroups. The hot topic of the ORF household fee will be further discussed in the subgroup on media, art and culture. Foreign policy talks are also taking place. Another meeting of the party leaders is possible at any time, but a specific date has not yet been set.
Coalition Negotiations: Meeting of Subgroups on Media and Foreign Policy on Friday
The future of the ORF is one of the biggest stumbling blocks in the coalition negotiations. The Freedom Party wants to abolish the recently introduced household fee, which the ÖVP has so far resisted. The People's Party's offer to maintain this fee and simply not adjust it for inflation in the coming years is rejected by the FPÖ. The issue is likely to be primarily dealt with directly by party leaders Herbert Kickl (FPÖ) and Christian Stocker (ÖVP), who have already met on Wednesday and Thursday.
The subgroup on foreign policy and the EU also has potential for conflict. The turquoise negotiators - led by the parliamentary group leader in the European Parliament Reinhold Lopatka - continue to insist on a commitment to the Union. Statements by the blue EU parliamentarian Petra Steger, who had referred to the European Parliament as the "heart of injustice", were not particularly helpful in this regard. It is also possible that a government department will once again be responsible for foreign and European policy.
The Styrian governor and former defence minister Mario Kunasek (FPÖ), on the other hand, expressed some approval for the Sky Shield air defence programme, which is controversial within his party. "Personally, I would probably say yes to the project from a military point of view," he said in the "Kleine Zeitung" (Friday edition). However, one must also take into account the "level of neutrality law": "You have to look closely." It is not yet known what command chains there will ultimately be, according to Kunasek. Regarding neutrality, he sees "different legal views".
No Break Planned in Coalition Negotiations
FPÖ and ÖVP do not want to take a negotiation break. At least the subgroups are supposed to attend further appointments over the weekend. The semester holidays will also be used. There is still no specific timeframe for the possible conclusion of the talks. However, according to APA information, participants in the talks doubt that an agreement could be reached by mid-February.
Protest Against Plans for Tuition Fees in Coalition Negotiations
SPÖ deputy club chairman Philip Kucher expressed his outrage on Friday in a press release about reports on the media policy of the Freedom Party. "When FPÖ representatives openly talk about individual journalists as enemy images, all alarm bells should ring." He opposes an autocratic restructuring of the media system and repeated the demand: "Do not make Kickl chancellor!" The Greens also do not want this, they called on ÖVP and SPÖ on social media to negotiate with each other again.
Meanwhile, the student representation called for a demonstration against a possible blue-black coalition on Friday afternoon. Due to alleged plans of the coalition negotiators to raise tuition fees to 1,000 euros, the Austrian Students' Union (ÖH) fears a massive restriction of free university access. Currently, 363.36 euros per semester are due if the planned study time is exceeded by more than two semesters. Even now, students cannot afford to study, the ÖH warned in a press release. According to the student social survey, three quarters of Austrian students had to work alongside their studies in 2023.
(APA/Red)
This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.