Austrian Elections & Politics 3.0 - Parliamentary Election: Oct. 15

[Tender Branson]

The ceremony now ends with the playing of the national anthem.

VdB will then walk over to the Hofburg (our "White House"), together with citizens.

The SPÖVP government will then offer their resignation to the President.

[Tender Branson]

The journalists were also amused by VdB's often humorous speech.

At one point he referred to himself as "no indigenous Austrian".

[Tender Branson]

Some pictures of VdB's swearing-in ceremony:

[Tender Branson]

VdB walking to the Hofburg:



Now lunch and at 3pm the SPÖVP government will offer their resignation.

[DavidB.]

Now lunch and at 3pm the SPÖVP government will offer their resignation.

What?

[Tender Branson]

Now lunch and at 3pm the SPÖVP government will offer their resignation.

What?

Once a new President is sworn in, the government traditionally offers its resignation.

Traditionally, the new President declines (but it's quite interesting now that they are in such a bad shape).

[Tender Branson]

Now lunch and at 3pm the SPÖVP government will offer their resignation.

What?

Once a new President is sworn in, the government traditionally offers its resignation.

Traditionally, the new President declines (but it's quite interesting now that they are in such a bad shape).

VdB has declined to dismiss the government.

[Klartext89]

No riots, no destroyed shops/cars, knocked/hurt people?

Oh, I forgot that a Leftist won.

[Tender Branson]

Here is the full speech:

https://www.facebook.com/notes/alexander-van-der-bellen/%C3%B6sterreich-das-sind-wir-alle/1432977910080580

I found no English translation so far, but just translate it with Google or something.

Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rt-k5Bri7Sk

[Tender Branson]

Here is the full speech:

https://www.facebook.com/notes/alexander-van-der-bellen/%C3%B6sterreich-das-sind-wir-alle/1432977910080580

I found no English translation so far, but just translate it with Google or something.

Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rt-k5Bri7Sk

I just saw that this is the draft speech, not the one delivered.

So, the humorous parts that VdB included during the speech were mostly improvised.

Too bad that you cannot understand it fully if you are a non-German speaker.

[ApatheticAustrian]

VdB is authentically dull with a sprinkle of dry humor.

[Tender Branson]

SPÖ and ÖVP cabinet members are talking until 2am in the night about an updated coalition agreement and work schedule for 2017.

They will then start again at 8am tomorrow.

According to Ö24, which has a live-ticker (but is also a sensationalist tabloid), the current "security group" consisting of the Defense Minister and Interior Minister are already debating for 3 hours and are behind schedule. Ö24 interprets this as a bad sign, but it could also be a good sign because they usually work together quite closely.

Still, I wouldn't be surprised if this coalition blows up tomorrow. I guess Kern and the SPÖ wants new elections and are sick and tired of the ÖVP's roadblocks ...

[Tender Branson]

The SPÖ gets their best polling numbers since early 2013 in the new "Heute" poll:



http://www.heute.at/news/politik/Umfrage-SP-nur-mehr-3-hinter-Blauen-VP-stagniert;art23660,1393257

[Tender Branson]

SPÖ and ÖVP continue to talk all day about their coalition program "update". Maybe they'll continue even tomorrow.

Today, the mood was much better and a few chapters have been agreed on.

Some tough areas are still very hard nuts to crack they said, but they are optimistic.

...

Plus: I was watching the Ö24 live stream yesterday and it seems Research Affairs (their pollster) will include a federal election poll next week with Sebastian Kurz as hypothetical ÖVP-leader. At least that's what the Research Affairs woman said. It will be interesting to see by how many points Kurz will bump up the ÖVP. Probably to a 3-way tie, with the FPÖ losing 5% compared with current polling.

[rob in cal]

  If I read Der Standard's article correctly the sides are differing on the migrant question, with OVP wanting the 17,500 upper limit, and the SPO instead wanting to focus on concrete measures to encourage people to return, such as higher return bonus, and foreign aid to countries that cooperate with accepting their citizens back.  I like both ideas.
   

[Tender Branson]

 If I read Der Standard's article correctly the sides are differing on the migrant question, with OVP wanting the 17,500 upper limit, and the SPO instead wanting to focus on concrete measures to encourage people to return, such as higher return bonus, and foreign aid to countries that cooperate with accepting their citizens back.  I like both ideas.

Yeah, at the end there will likely be some compromise (lowering the quota and more incentives for asylum seekers to return home etc. or more deportations).

Still, it would be better if they find a way on how to deport the ever increasing number of "tolerated" asylum seekers who are illegals (people who have thrown away their passports and cannot be deported anymore, because their countries are not willing to take them back - many of them are die-hard criminals, murderers, rapists, drug dealers etc. and still collecting welfare money). Their number is now more than 6.000 already.

BTW: Kern has scrapped his planned Israel-trip starting tomorrow and will remain in Vienna. This is a sign he takes the talks more seriously now, rather than favouring new elections.

[Tender Branson]

Here is the source for my post above:

https://kurier.at/chronik/oesterreich/wien-6165-fluechtlinge-koennen-nicht-abgeschoben-werden/241.742.435

I need to clarify that there are 6.200 asylum seekers alone in Vienna, whose asylum requests were denied but who cannot be deported to their countries of origin for various reasons.

Still, they are illegals and despite their rejected asylum status they still collect welfare money and still they commit (often serious) crimes ...

[Tender Branson]

SPÖ and ÖVP started their government "update" talks again today and will continue tomorrow and early next week.

After the mood was pretty good yesterday and some issues were agreed on, the mood is worse again today because the Interior Minister talked with the press about some details of the talks (which apparently Kern didn't like). Kern wants the cabinet members to shut up until everything is finished, then every minister should sign the updated deal - so that the ministers can be held accountable if they are not living up to the points they have agreed on.

[Simfan34]

Kurz: when Justin Trudeau is just too old for you...

[Tender Branson]

Kurz: when Justin Trudeau is just too old for you...

Kurz really is the Austrian Justin Trudeau. The media hyped him over the past few days of coalition talks as "coming out of them unscathed" and some insiders are reporting that he and Duzdar (SPÖ) are working out a nice integration package for immigrants.

It remains to be seen though if Kurz also performs as well when he becomes ÖVP-leader and their frontrunner, when the attacks from the other parties are going to start ...

Anyway, coalition talks continue today into the night and probably tomorrow too. Sources say SPÖ and ÖVP are close to a comprehensive package for their last 1.5 years and the biggest hurdles in the way are how to finance them (the ÖVP's finance minister wants to trim the budget deficit down to below 1%) and Chancellor Kern's covert leanings towards snap elections (which means he still might blow up the talks and call new elections).

[Tender Branson]

BREAKING:

SPÖ and ÖVP party committee meetings have been set for tomorrow and Kern and Mitterlehner will have an appointment with President Van der Bellen.

This either means early federal elections, or that an agreement has been reached in the talks.

[Tender Branson]

An agreement has been reached by SPÖ and ÖVP during their coalition "update" talks late yesterday night.

They worked out a comprehensive reform and working plan for their remaining 1.5 years, which will be passed in their party committees in the next hours, then presented to the President and then to the press and the public in the afternoon.

While media insiders who were present at the talks said "Chancellor Kern (SPÖ) is happy with the results", the media spins it mostly as "a victory for the ÖVP, Mitterlehner and Kurz".

This is probably because of tougher measures for immigration, asylum and security as well as incentives for companies to strengthen the labour market.

We'll see once the whole package is presented if there's a SPÖ-handwriting in it as well ...

[Tender Branson]

It seems the SPÖ's main accomplishments in the agreement are:

* the introduction of a uniform minimum wage of 1500€ a month
* coaches for long-term unemployed to integrate them into the labour market
* generally more money for the AMS (labour market service agency)
* a work guarantee for workers above the age of 50, who are often unlikely to find jobs again

* free tablets and laptops for students from elementary school to higher schools
* generally more money for education and universities
* more aid for university students with poor background
* more research and development money and language trips for students/workers abroad

[Tender Branson]

The ÖVP's main accomplishments seem to be:

* more video surveillance, tougher border controls and data storage
* electronic shackles for suspects of Islamist extremism and those who return from war zones
* a further reduction of immigration and asylum seekers
* mandatory registration of prepaid SIM-cards using an ID of the buyer

* Burka and headscarf ban in public places and institutions such as schools, courts etc.
* 2nd free kindergarten year (also for immigrant children) to learn German faster
* an "integration year" for asylum seekers in which they do community work
* Salafists and radical Muslims will be banned to sell the Koran on the streets

* labour market: more flexible working times for employees of up to 12 hours a day
* less bureaucracy and taxes for employers, so they can hire workers more easily
* reduction of family benefits to foreigners (you now need to work a few years longer in Austria)

[Tender Branson]

The SPÖ's party committee has agreed to the agreement.

Here is the full agreement btw:

http://images.derstandard.at/2017/01/30/170130Arbeitsprogramm1718.pdf