Negotiated with Kickl – Stocker: “My reputation has certainly suffered”

“Kron”: Mr. Stocker, you are 65 years old and have a successful law firm that your son will take over. You could be playing golf for years to come. Why are you doing this to yourself?
Christian Stocker: Actually, I could have made it easier for myself. But it’s about the country and not about me. I am economically and personally independent. I don’t have to please anyone and I don’t have to become anything anymore. In the situation that Austria finds itself in, I think it is right to hold coalition talks. The country urgently needs a government.

In addition to independence, there is also a personal reputation, which was previously very high and is now extremely damaged. Isn’t that worth anything to you?
It wasn’t easy for me at all. It is certainly true that my reputation has suffered. This also damages credibility in politics. Yes, it’s also true: I always said I wouldn’t negotiate with Herbert Kickl – and now I do. This step was more than difficult for me personally.

Then why are you doing it? Wouldn’t new elections be fairer?
I do it because I believe this step is necessary compared to all other alternatives. Not for me. Not even for the party. New elections are never a threat in a democracy. But what if we hold new elections: that means standstill. We would have months of election campaigns, and then months of government negotiations. With an election result in which it is not at all certain that three parties are enough for a majority. This time would be very disadvantageous for Austria. I will enter into these discussions and we will see what the outcome of the negotiations is.

A party is not afraid of elections, but it is afraid of a major loss in the results. Isn’t the ÖVP selling its honor?
A minus with every choice is the risk and of course the wish is always a plus. Elections are always ups and downs. This is democracy. Majorities are formed based on the results. With the decision to negotiate with Herbert Kickl, we want to get out of this difficult majority formation and give the country a chance. It really is true that decisions have to be made. That doesn’t work in a transitional government, we’ve already seen that.

In other words, the ÖVP is in a lose-lose situation…
It’s definitely not a win-win situation. The future will tell everything else. We cannot see into the future.

You told Herbert Kickl in parliament in December: ‘She doesn’t need the country.’ How do you do that when you look in the mirror in the morning? Do you say to yourself: “Close your eyes and carry on”?
It has nothing to do with Herbert Kickl when I look in the mirror in the morning and close my eyes. But all jokes aside: who my negotiating partner is is primarily determined by the voters. Then I can decide for myself. I had a different plan. Karl Nehammer kept this promise and I accompanied him on this journey. We conducted negotiations with the SPÖ and NEOS and also wanted a conclusion. However, Karl Nehammer could not fulfill the mandate to form a government. Not because he didn’t want to, not because he couldn’t, but because the SPÖ first drove the NEOS and then the ÖVP away from the negotiating table.

Didn’t all three fail? The NEOS, which wanted to play too big a role as a nine percent party. The SPÖ because they did not want to take off their ideological glasses, and the ÖVP because they did not even want to allow a bank tax…This is all too shortsighted. I already noticed at NEOS that they wanted to find a compromise in which multiple interests could be combined. In my opinion, it failed because of Andreas Babler, who did not want to free himself from the world of class struggle.

The prevention of Herbert Kickl was a very central election promise. Isn’t this voter fraud?
We’re a few steps too far. We are negotiating with the FPÖ. We will see at the end of the negotiations whether an agreement is reached.

What do you think are the chances?
The negotiations are open-ended: we urgently need to be able to act in Austria. But for us it is important that there is no Öxit. We believe it is important that we orient ourselves towards the free, Western world and not towards dictatorships. We believe it is important that the rule of law is the basis of politics. We will see how the FPÖ evaluates these positions…

What does the timetable look like?
We will dedicate ourselves to the task of reporting the reference path to Brussels. Here you will find detailed preparatory work of the coalition negotiations so that we can make a decision quickly.

What was it like for you to suddenly become ÖVP leader during the crisis meeting? Apparently they didn’t even have a suit…
That’s right. In my future planning, being ÖVP leader was not even an unreal option. On the day I was appointed acting chairman of the federal party, I drove to Vienna in a turtleneck and jeans to prepare for the course. It was not in my plan that I would be part of this decision.

Did you immediately say yes?
I’ve never said yes or no straight away in my life. Maybe once, as far as my wife is concerned. That was a good decision at the time. I made a good decision then and I hope this time too. You can see how hard a relationship can be in politics, as my wife heard through the media that I would become the new ÖVP leader.

Are there major concerns within the ÖVP, but also in the Hofburg about the Interior and Defense departments? It should not end up in the hands of the FPÖ as it did in 2017. Would you give up Sky Shields so that the ÖVP can keep the Ministry of the Interior?
When we get to that point, I will let the negotiating partner know what positions I take in the negotiations. But I have clear views on this.

Which ones do you not want to reveal yet?
Correct. I will not conduct such negotiations publicly.

Viennese Deputy Mayor Christian Wiederkehr of the NEOS said in the “Krone” interview that the SPÖ tabled a document in January with 30 new taxes. Is that correct?
In fact, we were repeatedly confronted with new ideas from the SPÖ, which were presented as alternatives to wealth taxes. But I saw them as a provocation. I also said that during the negotiations. We have done our utmost to extract points from these suggestions that are acceptable to us so that a conclusion can be reached. We have found a total of one billion euros in revenue as a possible consensus if the total package is implemented. But my perception was that it was never enough for the SPÖ.

That one billion wasn’t enough…
That wasn’t enough.

Apparently the SPÖ wanted three billion…
Yes, that’s what they wanted. The SPÖ only wanted measures on the income side, but not on the expenditure side.

Is it true that the SPÖ’s grandmother, Doris Bures, was no longer in Andreas Babler’s team during the last meetings?
Doris Bures was there during the exploration phase, then Andreas Babler composed his team differently and Doris Bures was no longer there.

How do you want to organize your role? Without wanting to offend you, you probably won’t take part in the next election campaign…
As a party leader you can have a very short or very long existence. But age certainly isn’t. I have looked at a few examples internationally and nationally. It is open in all directions.

Does it actually hurt you when an ÖVP great like Franz Fischler threatens to leave if a coalition with the FPÖ is formed…
Of course it hurts me if such a personality considers leaving the ÖVP family because of these developments. Over the coming weeks I will try to address these concerns.

Many business people are concerned that Chancellor Herbert Kickl could weaken Austria as a business location. Does the ÖVP actually want to take that risk?
Prosperity depends on a prosperous economy. We need to strengthen the business location. It is clear to me that we are being watched very closely internationally. I am also aware that there are critical views and concerns. That is why I have defined exactly what our preconditions are. There should be no Öxit. We need international cooperation in political and economic areas. We cannot isolate ourselves.

A favorite enemy image is the ORF. Will the ÖVP be a bulwark against the destruction of the ORF?
Based on the findings of the Constitutional Court, changes must take place. A truly independent media landscape is an important part of our democracy. But we will see how it is solved in detail at ORF.