NEOS-Listener Arapovic reviews five successful years of Red-Pink in Vienna

That she is now at the top of the pink state list in the Vienna election also surprised Arapovic, as she revealed in the APA interview: "A lot of things just come unexpectedly." The events at the federal level have set a "Ferris wheel" in motion even for the NEOS.

Arapovic unexpectedly moved up as NEOS top candidate in Vienna election

In fact, the mandate holder, born in Bosnia, was only in second place on the list. But then party leader and top candidate Christoph Wiederkehr became Minister of Education. The previous club chairwoman Bettina Emmerling took over the education and integration department in the town hall. Arapovic became club chairwoman and moved up to the first place. Formally, she has been the top candidate since then, even though the NEOS use this designation for both her and Emmerling.

Praise for cooperation with the Vienna SPÖ

In the election campaign, however, this plays hardly any role, as they appear as a team, she assures. "And we really have a good team." Her comparatively low profile worries her little, as she explains with reference to her beginnings in the party in 2015: "I can remember this election campaign, where we approached people with our flyers and asked: Do you already know the NEOS?" Since then, much has changed: "Now we are in the federal government."

In Vienna, the NEOS have been co-governing since 2020. From her perspective, the cooperation with the SPÖ "really worked well," she noted: "Yes, it was certainly sometimes challenging, but fundamentally very appreciative, very on equal footing, and very constructive, I would say." Which does not mean that there was no need for discussion at times. "I think that's also the case in most areas of cooperation, not just in politics." Sometimes you have to assert yourself, but also make compromises. The willingness to work together is there, however.

Renewal of Red-Pink in Vienna as a wish

According to Arapovic, this also applies to the future, at least for the NEOS. "I would really wish for it," she says about a possible new edition of Red-Pink. Projects that have been initiated would partly need a longer time. Therefore, it is in the interest of the NEOS to co-govern for another five years. She herself was mainly active in the areas of housing and urban planning. Here she refers, for example, to the amendment of the building regulations, which was developed and passed in the coalition.

"And for the first time ever in Austria, we have introduced an online government monitor where every Viennese can see where we stand with the projects." They are at 95 percent of completed projects, the NEOS lead candidate stated with satisfaction. The area of education was considered a major challenge in the period coming to an end - especially the often insufficient German language skills of primary school students. Corona, the Ukraine war, and family reunification have massively burdened the system, she emphasized.

"And yet it was also managed to accommodate every child. Yet it was managed to create enough school places." That numerous first graders had to be classified as extraordinary students, even though they had previously attended a kindergarten in Vienna, is also a failure of the federal government, according to Arapovic. Strong support would have been needed here. "It was not sufficient." Now the federal government has agreed on a second mandatory kindergarten year: "I am really firmly convinced that this will lead to a significant improvement in the situation."

Consolidate Budget Without Loss of Quality

Specific demands and plans that they want to address in coalition negotiations will be presented by the NEOS soon, as Arapovic explained. Should coalition negotiations occur, one topic will likely always be present: the difficult budget situation. The pink city hall politician advocates finding consolidation potentials without leading to a loss of quality. Instead of putting together austerity packages, attempts should be made to generate additional revenue.

This could be achieved, for example, through debureaucratization, which could contribute to strengthening Vienna as a business location, said Arapovic. Here too, she relies on the NEOS government team in the federal government, such as the state secretary responsible for the topic, Sepp Schellhorn. It would be sensible to accelerate approval procedures for commercial areas, she was convinced.

(The interview was conducted by Gerald Mackinger/APA)

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