This national holiday is the last that the House of Representatives celebrates in the temporary quarters in the Hofburg – the return to the renovated Hohes Haus am Ring is planned in the coming weeks. National Council chairman Wolfgang Sobotka (ÖVP) hopes that all parliamentary groups will then “take a more moderate stance in their dealings with each other,” as he said. Because the “constant rumbling” below the waist is “unbearable” for the population and unfortunate for democracy.
Even before parliamentary operations move to the old new building, witness hearings in the ÖVP Corruption Investigation Commission come to an end as the NEOS oppose an extension. As chairman of the committee, Sobotka was sharply criticized by the opposition, as well as the Greens, and asked to resign.
Sobotka declined to say whether he was happy with the end of the commission. For the opposition, he is clearly someone “whose attitude is not accepted – because I am very clear and also have a certain steadfastness”, says the chairman of the National Council.
What he finds “really difficult for our democracy” is “when the political debate is no longer conducted with political arguments, but with advertisements, with these dirty campaigns,” Sobotka criticized. Quarrels and constant “clapping” below the belt are “unacceptable” to the population and eventually led people to turn away. “I can only appeal that when moving into the new house we are taking a more moderate stance in our dealings with each other,” said Sobotka. This call is aimed at “all” factions.
Despite numerous crises that need to be addressed, Sobotka hopes that the rules of the U-committee will also be changed in the coming months. There are a number of things that could be done better now, he believes, such as defining the subject of the investigation and setting up several shorter subcommittees in succession instead of one expansive one like the current one.
Former Interior Minister sees Austria “well prepared” for the migration crisis this time
In the current migration situation, the former Interior Minister (2016/2017) sees Austria as better prepared than in the previous crisis: “We are well prepared”, he said, “we were not in this shape in 2015 and 2016”. Almost everyone also has the same view on how to deal with it, namely helping people, but also clearly saying that asylum cannot be a right where you can “simply travel through countless states that offer security and choose one’s social system, as it were”.
EU border management: criticism in the EU
However, he sees the high “burden” for Austria, comparable to 2015. It is “really annoying” that the EU has not yet succeeded in setting up a good EU external border structure. In addition, Sobotka recalled the high level of commitment to care for people displaced from Ukraine – and they also had “the moral obligation” to do so. The situation is certainly a major challenge for many, but one should also “take note” of the statistics that seven states are not delivering the agreed number of quarters, Sobotka noted. Recently, there has been a commotion between the federal government and the states and municipalities as the Ministry of the Interior has started setting up tents for asylum seekers.
Indirect reprimand for Sachslehner
Sobotka can do nothing with demands like those of Viennese ÖVP city councilor and former secretary general Laura Sachslehner for a “stop accepting asylum applications”. “Populism doesn’t help anyone,” Sobotka said. “We all know that when the word ‘asylum’ is uttered, the legal basis must apply.”
Source: Krone
I’m an experienced news author and editor based in New York City. I specialize in covering healthcare news stories for Today Times Live, helping to keep readers informed on the latest developments related to the industry. I have a deep understanding of medical topics, including emerging treatments and drugs, the changing laws that regulate healthcare providers, and other matters that affect public health.
