SPÖ leader Andreas Babler and the chairman of the Lower Austrian state party, provincial councilor Sven Hergovich, criticized the widening gap between interest rates on savings and loans on Friday. “This injustice must be fought,” Babler emphasized at a press conference in St. Pölten as part of his “comeback tour” and called for an interest rate freeze. Market interventions are “absolutely justified” and “easily financed” by the banking system, according to Hergovich.
European Central Bank (ECB) interest rates would be passed on to borrowers, but not to savers, the red state party leader criticized. He renewed the demand for an interest rate ceiling: It must be guaranteed that no one pays more than three percent interest on housing loans. This is to be financed by a tax on the banks’ excess profits, which reportedly amounted to €10.2 billion last year. In addition, Hergovich demanded that rents be frozen and financing obligations for new cooperative buildings in Lower Austria resumed.
“Enough politics that gives comfort”
Although consumer protection minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) has filed a class action lawsuit in the banking sector, the SPÖ is now in favor of legal action: “We have had enough of a policy that comforts, that controls”, lawsuits would sometimes take years to complete, said the red party leader, who is also a member of the Federal Council and mayor of Traiskirchen (Baden district). He is “sick” of some areas taking advantage of the situation to “make big profits”.
Friday’s program as part of the “Comeback Tour” included a visit by Babler to the Frequency Festival in St. Pölten. On Saturday, the SPÖ boss will be a guest at festivals in Schwarzenau (Zwettl district) and Herzogenburg (St. Pölten district), to continue in Salzburg on Monday and in Upper Austria on Tuesday. Another visit from Babler to his home state of Lower Austria is scheduled for August 30 at the Wachauer Volksfest in Krems.
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.
