“Paying Employees” – SPÖ Rips Turquoise Green Aid Package Into The Sky

The SPÖ is particularly critical of the proposed refinancing of the emergency package. Because, as Treasury Secretary Magnus Brunner (ÖVP) explained on Tuesday, two-thirds of the aid package is to be financed by higher sales tax revenues and another third by a rebound in domestic purchasing power — in other words, the state expects spending from the now-announced compensation was recovered through higher tax revenues.

‘War winners remain war winners’
“The so-called cash-back package will not skim off the excess profits of the companies to provide counter-financing. War winners remain war winners. 85 percent of that will be paid by taxes on work and consumption, i.e. by working people,” said the SPÖ. The Social Democrats had repeatedly called for a reduction in VAT on basic foodstuffs, which is certainly not planned now. Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler (Greens) again rejected a reduction in the tax on mineral oil.

Video: The government presents the anti-inflation package

FPÖ leader Kickl saw the package as a “broad label fraud”: “First you rig people up with huge extra income from VAT, which is an extra ‘inflation tax’ on petrol and diesel, electricity and gas and on every purchase of bread, it says. for meat or vegetables. The state is filling the money supply to bursting point with this black-and-green stall policy before hesitantly starting to hand out alms. This is a mockery of the massively suffering population,” he muttered.

“imperfections”, “unsustainable”
GPA union president Barbara Teiber said it was to be welcomed that the government had now quickly decided on a package of measures, but: “There are inadequacies and measures that will have a very negative effect on the long-term working person.” term.” She also criticized the missing VAT cut, as did ÖGB chairman Wolfgang Katzian: “One-off payments do not slow the rise in inflation, the price level rises permanently.”

Volkshilfe also criticized the one-offs as “unsustainable”: “The cost of inflation for households whose income mainly consists of remittances is not covered by one-offs. Minimum income families or job seekers are not insured in the long term by one-off benefits.” However, the valorisation of social benefits is seen as very positive.

“It is good that the government is finally responding,” says AK chairman Renate Anderl. “The package will help cushion the impact of high inflation. What is missing, however, are measures that have a real ‘price-cutting effect’ and measures that really strengthen the welfare state and make it poverty-proof.”

Caritas is cautious. “We will first see whether the measures are suitable as a rescue package. It will be crucial that aid reaches the people quickly now, that queues for food distribution and social counseling centers are reduced again and that people have more air to breathe in due course,” said President Michael Landau.

Company rejoices at cost reduction
The trade association and trade association, on the other hand, applauded the package of measures. The President of the Federation of Industrialists, Georg Knill, said: “The announced steps to reduce non-labour costs will ease the long-term power factor through the combination of a reduction in accident insurance and the FLAF contribution and the creation of employment incentives.” Trade Association director Rainer Will called the elimination of the cold progression and the reduction of non-wage labor costs a “big hit”.

The Chamber of Commerce saw “correct steps” being taken. “It is important that the measures now quickly reach companies and their employees,” said WKÖ chairman Harald Mahrer. Mahrer was particularly pleased with the relief of energy through electricity price compensation and energy cost subsidies: “This helps our businesses and has a dampening effect on energy inflation.”