[ad_1]
The FPÖ Gudenus MP is not extradited, the deadline for the new consular law
Vienna (PK) – In fact, party support is expected to increase by 7.78% this year due to inflation. De facto, however, the most will be only 2%. The National Council decided today at the initiative of the ÖVP and the FPÖ. The current valuation clause will therefore be amended retroactively as of January 1, 2019. As the coalition parties point out, saving millions of dollars is, however, controversial, according to NEOS calculations. temporary savings, that is to say, soon compensated. The reason is that, according to the law, subsidies will automatically increase each year and not only when a 5% inflation threshold is reached.
The new valuation clause also applies to other amounts in the Party Law and the Party Promotion Act. For example, this year's campaign costs ceiling, share donations and special party funding after the European elections will increase by 2% this year and will increase each year in the future.
Only the coalition parties voted for the bill. This year alone, the parties would receive 2.5 million euros less than under the applicable Valorisierungsregel, said ÖVP spokesman Wolfgang Gerstl. Markus Tschank (FPÖ) spoke of savings of 2 million euros. Proving once again that the coalition was saving money in the system, Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) and Philipp Schrangl (FPÖ), among others.
The ÖVP and the FPÖ stressed the importance of party promotion in the debate. With the possible exception of NEOS, there is a consensus that the democratic system in Austria should be supported by parties and that parties should be funded by the public sector, said Harald Stefan (FPÖ) . This public support also ensures transparency.
This was also emphasized by colleagues from Stefan's group, Tschank and Schrangl. The funding of public parties helps maintain party diversity, Tschank said. According to him, the financing of private parties would be much more sensitive to corruption. A typical example of the "purchase" of a party by an "Austrian oligarch" is for him the gifts of Hans Peter Haselsteiner's industrialist at NEOS – on the other hand, the FPÖ was independent, incorruptible and committed only to the people. Schrangl pointed out that there are many ways to "give money" to a party, not only by donations, but also by advertisements or by staff. The support of public parties is far more transparent. Nehammer, a member of ÖVP, also believes that the financing of public parties is important.
The future annual increase in funding Schrangl parties called "fair and transparent". Finally, the costs for the parties would increase. Valuation guarantees the existence of the party system, even Chank is convinced.
NEOS and NOW want to significantly reduce or freeze party support
The new valuation clause has, however, been strongly criticized by NEOS. Contrary to what the ÖVP and the FPÖ claim, this does not generate total savings, but in the medium and long term, it even results in additional costs for taxpayers, said Nicholas Scherak. According to his calculations, in just four years, the effects of temporary savings will be restored. Austria already has the second largest party financing in the world and the highest in Europe. "They are not going to bed, they are earning more and more taxpayers' money," said the scandalous NEOS constitutional spokesman, adding that the ÖVP and the FPÖ were talking about economies. . However, a request from NEOS to freeze party support in its current state and a relevant amendment did not find a majority in the vote.
Scherak also called for more transparency in party funding and tougher sanctions for exceeding the campaign cost ceiling. NEOS would make all receipts and expenditures meticulously public, he said.
Even the NOW parliamentary group could not prevail with the requested amendments. Peter Pilz can in principle imagine an annual promotion of the promotion of political parties but, in his opinion, such a guarantee of value is justified only if the amounts of the subsidy are reduced by half in advance. In his opinion, this should also apply to the promotion of political parties in the federated states. Such an initiative could restore confidence in politics, believes Pilz. In addition, we would honor the slogan "save in the system".
According to NOW, the funds released could also be used to adjust transfer payments to private households, such as dependency allowance or study allowance, on an annual basis. One million Austrians live below or below the poverty line, explained Mushroom. "But nothing is valued." The only people in need were, in the eyes of the ÖVP and the FPÖ, apparently the parties. Pilz is also convinced that election campaigns could cost a lot less.
Another concern of Pilz and his colleagues in the group is the prohibition of party donations to public companies as well as private companies taking part in tenders. "Anyone who takes public contracts can not finance parties," he said, should be clear. This could prevent companies from gaining political influence through party donations. In support of its request, Pilz submitted a motion for a resolution which was largely rejected.
SPÖ wants to sanction the exceeding of the ceiling of the campaign costs more severe
Against the coalition bill, the parties also voted for the SPÖ. The SPÖ was not against the promotion of the party, said Muna Duzdar. Finally, it is an important pillar of democracy but, in his opinion, effective sanctions would be needed to significantly exceed the campaign cost ceiling. He also hit their faction colleague, Thomas Drozda. During the election campaign for elections to the National Council, the "ÖVP" had been deceived and deceived, "said Duzdar. The mbadive exceeding of the campaign costs ceiling of an amount of 6 million euros confers a competitive advantage.
Duzdar and Drozda both accused the ÖVP of not adhering to the announcement of Chancellor Sebastian Kurz. Party support has also increased this year. Instead, the valuation would be "whispered quietly and secretly". Apparently, the people of the ÖVP and FPÖ desired in Austria "were selling stupidly," said Duzdar. "You do not save in the system, but in the people" is also incomprehensible for Drozda that in the future, although the promotion of the party is valued every year, but not the least. 39, care allowance.
The constitutional spokesman of the ÖVP, Gerstl, accused the SPÖ of having made a dishonest attitude. Finally, the SPÖ Chancellor, Werner Faymann, decided to validate the Valorisierungsklausel. The Social Democrat Party probably does not agree with the coalition proposal because it would have preferred a 7.8% increase in party support rather than 2%, he said. Assumed. This prompted NEOS MEP Gerald Loacker to point out that the law on political party subsidies was not adopted by Chancellor Faymann, but by SPÖ and ÖVP MEPs.
Even if not, the debate was characterized by mutual blame among the factions. For example, the MEP Nehammer, Member of the European Parliament, Pilz rejected the right to speak about transparency and cleanliness in politics. The third president of the National Council, Anneliese Kitzmüller, tried to calm the spirits. The MP for the ÖVP, Gerstl, gave them, for the expression "Pharisee" of the SPÖ, a public order.
MP Johann Gudenus is not extradited
At the end of the agenda, the Vienna Public Prosecutor's Office asked to prosecute the FPÖ deputies and to preside over the president of the club, Johann Gudenus. This would have violated Article 283 (1), No 2 and paragraph 2, which concern the offense of incitement to hatred. The majority of the National Council plenum followed the recommendation of the Immunity Committee not to extradite Gudenus. ÖVP, FPÖ and NOW see a link between Gudenus' political activity and the alleged infringement.
The NEOS complained that, according to them, a video broadcast on "FPÖ-TV" and on the party's Facebook page was based on racist clichés. This illustrates the misuse of the electronic card with a Ali wearing a fez.
New Consular Law: The Foreign Affairs Committee will be informed until April 11
Finally, the majority of MEPs accepted the request by MEPs Roman Haider (FPÖ) and Reinhold Lopatka (ÖVP) to set a deadline of 11 April 2019 for the Foreign Affairs Committee to report on the draft law on the right of the consular. The aim is to regulate comprehensively the exercise of consular functions, which currently relies solely on the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations and a series of relevant relevant laws, in its own right. The previous regulations are inadequate, it says in the notes.
Another session of the National Council (69th) was devoted to communications and official tasks. (Final National Council) gs / jan
Surveys and contact:
Press Service of the Parliamentary Directorate
Parliament's correspondence
Phone: +43 1 40110/2272
Pressedienst@parlament.gv.at
http://www.parlament.gv.at
www.facebook.com/OeParl
www.twitter.com/oeparl
[ad_2]
Source link
