Criticism of ÖVP – dispute over money for children: SPÖ and Neos angry

Under state law, parents must pay a minimum of $50 for the afternoon care of their little ones in kindergarten. SPÖ and Neos made a proposal to the state parliament in St. Pölten on June 15: the amount must be repaid – 34,000 children would be affected nationwide. The application was then referred to the competent committee. Now the relevant body has reconvened – with the result that the topic has been postponed again.

SPÖ spokesperson René Pfister: “We are used to people burying, changing or disallowing our applications. But the emergency measures for citizens are put on the back burner here!” Since primary school children have at least 100 euros to go to school, SPÖ education spokeswoman Elvira Schmidt asks: “Are schoolchildren in Lower Austria worth more than preschoolers?”

ÖVP justifies himself
Doris Schmidl, family spokeswoman for the ÖVP, calculates differently: “For the recently presented aid package for our families, the state and municipalities will spend an additional 750 million euros on childcare over the next five years. That is more than in any other federal state.”

For the ÖVP, the focus is on the freedom of choice for families – those who need childcare must also be able to find the right offer. In addition to free mornings, affordable afternoon care is also important: “We are close partners with the communities here. But what is also clear: we are talking about taxpayers’ money that should be used sparingly.”

The blue-yellow childcare package is under public scrutiny these days. Schmidl: “Every well-intentioned suggestion is important, which is why we take a close look at all the ideas in the committee.”