"Put on the table"

Meinl-Reisinger pushes for security strategy

Beate Meinl-Reisinger

(Bild: APA/EVA MANHART)

On Sunday, Beate Meinl-Reisinger once again urged the adoption of a new security strategy and the withdrawal from Russian gas. 

With regard to the latter, the government must finally "put the gas supply contracts between OMV and Russia's Gazprom on the table", Meinl-Reisinger demanded on ORF's "Pressestunde" program. A law is also needed to create the basis for withdrawing from the contracts.

"In Austria, people pay four times more for gas than in other countries," argued the NEOS leader, who sees an "obligation on the part of the government" to "clarify what is in the contract". The fact that OMV is not terminating the contracts is "understandable", but the fact that the government is not is not. Meinl-Reisinger does not see any risk for end customers in the event of an exit.

Discussing neutrality
The NEOS leader considers it a "scandal" that there is still no security doctrine on the table. This is because all of the army's procurements would proceed haphazardly without one. "We are putting the cart before the horse." She considers Austria's planned participation in the European air defense system Sky Shield to be "the right thing to do".

Meinl-Reisinger also wants to discuss neutrality "openly and honestly". This has already changed as a result of joining the EU. "We are obliged to provide assistance." A proper security strategy is needed, which is negotiated in parliament - also with the FPÖ. According to the NEOS, citizens should also be involved in the process, for example in a citizens' council. "It is only honest to say that we need to have a debate about what we mean by that."

"Mission 40 percent"
Meinl-Reisinger once again emphasized that the government is also failing to reduce the tax and contribution rate. This is why the NEOS are now launching "Mission 40 percent" with the aim of reducing the tax and contribution rate to 40 percent, including rounds of dialog with citizens and entrepreneurs. The aim is not just to talk, but to deliver. "We are putting forward proposals on how to reduce the burden on the labor factor."

Meinl-Reisinger's first-instance judgment against former Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) is not about his false statement, but rather about the "system" that has prevailed for many years. A few had seen the republic as a "self-service store". The issues that had been worked out in the U-Committee were corruption of advertisements and posts. The parties had not acted in the interests of the citizens but in their own interests. As a result, there had been a "huge loss of trust" in politics overall.

"Oath to Austria"
Meinl-Reisinger defended the "oath to Austria" for new citizens that she had brought up. The NEOS leader argued that this was linked to the discussion on the dominant culture and the question of "what we actually expect as a society".