Interview “Krone” – Minister of Social Affairs is angry with the trade

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Minister of Social Affairs Johannes Rauch of the Greens calls the attitude of the food companies frivolous. “We are now tightening the screws in the food sector. It really annoyed me how big the resistance was there and there was no willingness from retailers to give in,” says Rauch in the interview with “Krone”.

“crown”: How satisfied are you with the government’s poverty reduction policy?
John Rauch: One-time payments are bad, but it’s about money. measures such as dThe double child benefit and the school starTpackage helps people a lot. And I’ve fought to get family and social benefits adjusted for inflation.

Why not lower VAT on groceries?
We are now tightening the screws in the food sector. It really pissed me off how heart over there the resistance was and es from retailers not willing to budge to chatter. There will be We now with competition law and tightened The control actually drive in. A VAT reduction is the last resort. Even the experts disagree agree how goal oriented the and the question is how do we ensure that this is passed on to customers.

Are the experts right that there is not enough competition in the food trade in Austria?
Absolute. In Austria we have a market concentration that cannot be matched anywhere else in Europe. We try, the problem from several sides approach: through transparencyz and competition law. I am convinced that these measures will work. The announcement alone has already caused movement to the prices guided.

Do food companies in Austria earn more than those in Germany, where prices are significantly lower?
I can’t say that because the numbers here are not transparent. But it is clear that the prices we have in some areas 10 to 20 percent higher than in Germany. That is not possible. The subjective feeling that for some products at the supermarket checkout 20 to 30 per cent more numberT than last year is correct. So I think people’s frustration is justified. Those are the food companies First I think it’s really frivolous to ask for energy cost subsidy to talk about lower prices.

Is it true that farmers also do not benefit from the high purchase prices?
Yes. The Farmers are highly dependent on the food trade. An extreme pressure is built up there. If farmer prices are pushed down, but end customers continue to pay higher prices, the difference is likely to remain with the food companies.

They have announced improvements for families with children. Is that enough to really reduce or prevent poverty? How much will this aid amount to?
child poverty it is for me currently the main topic. I can’t give numbers yet we are still negotiating. aAbout there will be a noticeable support that will be noticed. And I can already announce that it is the start of schoolpackage will also be available this year.

Why hasn’t the government done more about high rents? Is there anything else coming?
With the living umbrella, we prevented 15,000 people from being evicted from their homes or having their electricity and heating cut off. The states would be given the opportunity to do even more – through housing assistance and non-profit housing. It’s a constant battle. We’ll stick to this topic.

Is it true that work and benefits protect against poverty, as the chancellor says?
I have been working with the long-term unemployed for years and I can tell you that most of them cannot get a job because they are too old or have a physical disability. Don’t give the impression that everyone is lounging in the social hammock. There may be a small fraction of people who It is everywhere. But the majority don’t. They are in distress, they are screwed. We have 80,000 long-term unemployed, some of which between unemployment and training rounds are sent.

Source: Krone

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