Wholesale energy prices have fallen, and Minister of Economic Affairs Martin Kocher (ÖVP) expects inflation to be dampened as a result. The price reductions should also be passed on to the end customers in the market, Kocher demanded from energy suppliers on Tuesday. The FPÖ criticized the minister for shifting responsibility.
In mid-January, the regulatory body E-Control set up a task force together with the Federal Competition Authority (BWB) to investigate price developments in the electricity and gas markets. “I welcome that,” the Minister of Economic Affairs told journalists.
Kocher explains the sharp increase in food prices in Austria in February by 16.5 percent compared to the same month last year with “energy-driven catch-up effects”. The BWB closely monitors supermarkets and the food industry.
Turquoise-green dispute over BWB boss
The competition authority has been led on an interim basis by lawyer Natalie Harsdorf-Borsch for the past 15 months because the governing parties ÖVP and the Greens could not yet agree on one person. The politically well-connected Vice President of the Federal Administrative Court (BvWG), Michael Sachs, was awarded one point more than Harsdorf-Borsch by the assessment committee in June 2022.
The Greens had refused Sachs’s ÖVP endorsement in the Council of Ministers after a report commissioned by the Greens concluded that Sachs did not meet the requirements for the post. A report commissioned by the Ministry of Economic Affairs later concluded that Sachs was suitable after all. “The BWB is fully operational, there are no restrictions on its business activities,” emphasized the Minister of Economic Affairs. But a coalition agreement is needed, he “cannot achieve this alone”.
Tempo for free master’s exam
The Minister of Labor plans to pay more attention to apprenticeships and vocational training in the coming months. The exemption from costs for the master’s exam and the further training after apprenticeship and master’s diploma will be determined in the current year and will come into effect in 2024. Kocher sees the reformed red-white-red card for controlled immigration from countries outside the EU on the right track.
This year, 1,131 of these cards were issued in January and February. In the same period last year, 2022, there were 764. According to the Minister of Labour, actively attracting more qualified immigrants to Austria has been a turning point in immigration policy over the past 20 years. “It’s a social process until everyone has adapted to it.”
“Just welcoming people, announcing them and really scaring them off is simply not enough for an economy minister,” the FPÖ renewed its criticism of Kocher. This should “finally get into deployment mode because people need noticeable relief now and not just on the crazy day,” explains company spokesperson Erwin Angerer. The Liberal accused the minister of having failed in the areas of inflation and abdication of responsibility. Once again, the opposition politician repeated the call for a temporary reduction in VAT on basic foodstuffs.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
