The voice of Austria

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The next government must tackle these seven issues as a matter of urgency.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV, Tschepp, Wenzel, picturedesk.com, EPA Georgi Licovski, Katja Haas,, ZDF)

The loud voice of Austria is waking up federal politics in the National Council election campaign. Seven clear demands now serve as the central guideline for the next government.

As unspectacular as the election campaign has been so far, the result promises to be exciting - and the time afterwards explosive. One thing is already clear: regardless of who will form the next government with whom - Austria's voice will and must be heard. This is shown by the hundreds of letters and reactions that reached the "Krone" during the campaign.

The aim was to give Austrians a powerful voice that would serve as a wake-up call for politicians. The basis for this was a survey conducted by opinion researcher Peter Hajek - which delivered clear results and also sparked further political debate.

"Anyone who doesn't follow our rules should be strictly deported!" 
 A message that was well received across party lines. Deportations of our neighbors from Germany and to Afghanistan, as well as the previous attack in Solingen, Germany, made the topic even more explosive.

"No new taxes! " 
A topic that was fueled above all by SPÖ leader Babler. He called for wealth, inheritance and higher corporation taxes. However, we have more of an expenditure problem than a revenue problem. New taxes will not solve this. Babler has also recently been criticized within the SPÖ.

"All schoolchildren need healthy and free school meals! " 
Every school and kindergarten child in Austria must be entitled to a warm and, above all, healthy snack for the (lunch) break.

"ORF yes - but smaller, more economical and closer to the customer!"
There is also a clear desire among Austrians for a more economical ORF. The ORF reform, which is legally necessary anyway, offers an opportunity to take this wish into account. Politicians will be judged by their actions.

"Plant trees, not citizens!"
Across Austria, emergency services battled against enormous volumes of water until the very end. The floods show how urgently our soil needs to be protected from speculators. Krone readers already had a clear opinion on this beforehand.

"My life must become affordable again!"
Austrians are having to spend more and more money on housing and everyday shopping. Vienna's SPÖ mayor Michael Ludwig even called for a separate housing ministry. One thing is certain, affordable housing and our food should be subsidized.

"Winnetou must remain Winnetou! " 
The Wokeness madness creates problems and does not solve them. ORF presenters should also refrain from using the often unpronounceable gender at the request of citizens.

It is messages like these that the 183 future National Councillors need to pay attention to. The next government is challenged. Otherwise the next election campaign may come sooner than we would all like ...