Debacle in Salzburg – NEOS: ‘We need to better communicate who we are’

“crown”: Where does the recent weakness of NEOS in states like Salzburg come from?
Lots of Dengler: The problem is the focus on the Viennese political establishment. With the best of intentions, Neos spends a lot of time and heart and soul in parliament, where Neos is a model student and the most hard-working MPs. But unlike Switzerland, where that would work, Austria has a “hug from parliament” – even the best work has no effect. Work and time lost for building structures in countries, scouting talent, etc. Diligence is deployed in the wrong place.

Should profiles be sharpened, as is often requested?
In the center, where the NEOS are located, it is more difficult to simply exacerbate problems than in the more extreme positions to the right or left. It’s easy there with more or less meaningless slogans, although we sometimes succeed (laughs). NEOS must communicate better and more clearly who we are. In socio-political terms, NEOS is clearly seen as cosmopolitan. But in the field of economic policy and competition, a vacuum has emerged. This is still partly attributed to the ÖVP, although that is no longer the case. Entrepreneurs know that too. But while we have the expertise, we are not seen as such. Neos could score there, we have a lot of competence. To use the example of housing, what the communists preach as “solutions” is not sustainable. The Social Democrats have a narrow focus, but less than a quarter of all main dwellings are social rental or cooperative housing, three quarters private! These are important investments and NEOS could emphasize its expertise more.

The NEOS are repeatedly labeled as neoliberal…
I had a stomach ache when we chose Neos as an abbreviation for our name, “Das Neue Österreich”. That is a relaxed punishment for critics, because of the neoliberal. But it is not neoliberal if you respect the laws of the market. Supply and demand – that’s the will of all of us expressed in money, you can’t pretend it doesn’t exist. This is the same in the living area as elsewhere.

NEOS in the federal government – surveys confirm good values ​​…
Relying on polls means building on sand. You have to do your thing with conviction and guts and be sure that the voters will appreciate it. NEOS is stronger in the federal government. The topics are different. For example, security policy hardly plays a role at the regional level, but it plays a very important role at the federal level. In terms of personnel, we have a completely different caliber with Beate Meinl-Reisinger, also in terms of communication, than our provincial councilor in Salzburg.

There is currently a lot of speculation about future coalition variants in the federal government after the next election in 2024. Where do you see the NEOS here?
It will not be easy to form a coalition after the next election. If we only get 7-8% in the elections, it will be difficult to have a say in the government, but that is what we are aiming for. It would be easier for us to meet with the ÖVP on economic policy, but not on migration policy. The ÖVP wants to play Schmidl for FPÖ Schmid. The ÖVP would do a round in the opposition for extra time. On the other hand, the SPÖ does one round in opposition and does not renew itself. She is currently trying to self-destruct. In other countries, Christian Socialists and Social Democrats hover around 10 percent. That can happen to us too. It is all the more important that there is a strong center party like NEOS.