Mayor Michael Ludwig made it clear on Saturday at the state party conference of the Viennese SPÖ in the exhibition center that he wants to continue to follow the “Viennese road”. This applies to pandemic management as well as areas such as housing, education, inflation and transportation, he said in his address on Saturday morning. At the big red event, after two postponements due to Corona, he is eligible for re-election from about 1,000 delegates.
“The pandemic is not over yet,” Ludwig began his speech – accordingly, the party congress also relied on the 2.5G rule and the obligation to wear masks outside the square. He defended the stricter corona measures in Vienna, including the obligation to wear a mask on public transport. “You don’t have to go to the disco, but most people have to use public transport.”
Wage increase demanded: ‘It must rustle’
For the coming collective labor agreement, Ludwig called for a substantial wage increase: “It has to ring… no, that’s not enough: it has to rustle.” The high inflation must be compensated. Employers could not go here because of a wage-price spiral. “The spiral is not reversed by high wages, but by high prices.”
In the field of education, Ludwig emphasized the non-contributory kindergarten and the non-contributory day school. He also announced the construction of a new central vocational school in the city on the Danube. In housing construction, a way will be found to create affordable living space despite rising real estate prices and construction costs – also in existing homes. To this end, the location surcharge for the benchmark rents must be submitted to the Constitutional Court.
Conflict issue Lobau
Ludwig wants to keep the 365 euro annual card for Wiener Linien in the future – but new roads will also be needed, he spoke about one of the most important conflict issues. The mayor defended both the Lobau tunnel and the city road: projects such as the Danube crossing as a bridge over the Lobau were rejected – but with the tunnel running 60 meters below the Lobau, one can now say with a clear conscience that this will not being influenced. With this truck, the project would relieve the Southeast ring road and the surrounding neighborhoods of traffic jams.
In the afternoon the Viennese party leader will be voted on, Ludwig does not have to take opponents into account. The election results should be available around 3 p.m.
Debates about expected motions
The motions can be debated more. On the one hand, a number of amendments to the articles of association are discussed. The road construction projects in the northeast of Vienna mentioned by Ludwig, namely the Lobau tunnel and the city street, which have been canceled by the federal government, are also likely to cause discussion. There will also be a demonstration on the subject on Saturday. The initiative “Lobau Remains” together with many other groups calls for a large demo. However, a rally directly at the exhibition hall was prohibited.
Source: Krone
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