"More Brains" Will Use Budget Crisis as an Opportunity

"More Brains" emphasizes that it is now important not only to focus on the aspects that "go well" in party and coalition logic but also to tackle the challenging tasks. Currently, there is an opportunity to "make a difference here." The paper was presented on Monday by Fiscal Council President Christoph Badelt, Alex Bodmann (Director of Caritas Vienna), Walter Emberger (Teach For Austria), and Katharina Rogenhofer (Context Institute).

Series of Proposals from "More Brains"

In addition to the mentioned points, the initiative also envisions an "intensive camp for those in need of support" after compulsory schooling, as well as a unified Austrian address register and web service, the greening of climate-damaging subsidies, or a "flagship project" for better use of energy networks, a national initiative to reduce bureaucracy, and the establishment of a state Austrian "Future Fund," which aims to improve access to venture capital for start-ups and scale-ups.

Public procurement should also be used proactively as an instrument to provide good opportunities for Austrian companies, especially innovative and sustainable providers. Furthermore, a project is needed to secure the pension system in the long term, which should develop a concept within six months.

There are also demands regarding the government's planned reform of social assistance and family benefits, stating that a comprehensive, coordinated, and effective system is needed to curb child poverty. The mandatory social service should last nine months - and can be completed either as military service (only for those with Austrian citizenship) or as civilian service. "The deployment opportunities for civilian service members need to be expanded accordingly," the paper states regarding the idea, which was first presented about a year ago.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.