On Thursday evening, the National Council decides on the budget for the following year. The last chapters, which have been worked through beforehand, show the well-known different positions between the coalition and the opposition. Even with the army budget, which will be significantly increased, there was a lot of criticism against the SPÖ, FPÖ and NEOS.
The budget of the Ministry of Defense has increased by 604.7 million euros or 22.3 percent compared to last year, to a total of 3.32 billion euros. This forms the basis for an increase in investments by 66 percent to 711.8 million euros and material costs by 27.5 percent to 1.06 billion euros.
“Only the Advent candle remains”
But the announced value of one percent of GDP will not be achieved, which caused outrage. SPÖ spokesman Robert Laimer said the estimate had been sold like a bombastic torch, only an Advent candle was left. His liberal colleague Volker Reifenberger emphasized that Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner (ÖVP) had rightly managed to see a fundamentally positive budget development as a defeat through her own fault. NEOS defense spokesman Douglas Hoyos again saw one of the coalition’s big announcements fall short.
The impression of the coalition is different. Tanner said that with the increase, Social Security would no longer be played off against military security. Equipping the army with modern equipment is not an end in itself, but protecting everyone. On the part of the Greens, mandated officer David Stögmüller added that a billion would also be invested in sustainability and energy independence in the army.
Women’s budget increased
On the first agenda item, the coalition factions ÖVP and Greens emphasized the increase in the women’s budget, this time by 32 percent to 24.3 million euros. There is only 0.5 percent more for family and youth. An additional cost will result from the valorisation of family benefits that will apply from next year. On the other hand, the special aid for 2022 no longer applies. The opposition was dissatisfied. Since last year there has been criticism of overlapping implementation steps for the new parent-child passport.
The global projection for 2023 is characterized by high inflation and energy prices due to the Russian attack on Ukraine. This has been discussed in plenary since Tuesday.
A lot of money to absorb inflation
In the total budget for 2023, the expenditure for tackling the corona crisis will be reduced, but a lot of money will be spent on absorbing inflation. According to the estimate, the Maastricht deficit will amount to 2.9 percent of economic production next year; however, it should fall back to 1.6 percent by 2026. Debts rise to 367 billion euros, but the share in the gross domestic product falls slightly from 78.3 to 76.7 percent. Particularly unfavourable: interest payments will double from 4.3 to almost 9 billion euros in 2023.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
