"Needs a revolution"

Experts now dissect “candy” plan for the budget

Tough negotiations on financial issues: SPÖ leader Andreas Babler, ÖVP Chancellor Karl Nehammer and NEOS leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger

(Bild: APA/Helmuth Fohringer)

Hot phase in the coalition negotiations: The focus is now on the budget. Experts analyze in the "Krone" and offer advice on how to consolidate finances that all parties could live with.

The budget subgroups meet on Friday. The most sensitive area in the negotiations between the ÖVP, SPÖ and NEOS. The whole day is spent negotiating and discussing detailed results. The approaches could hardly be more different. Keyword wealth tax, or as SP leader Andreas Babler puts it "broader shoulders must bear more".

Nevertheless, all three are quite confident that they will come together in mid-January. External communication? Hardly any: It is said that no results can be anticipated and that nothing will probably be announced until next week.

"They haven't heard the shot"
 "I find the relaxed approach remarkable. They've been fiddling around for weeks about whether and how they could work together. This has severely weakened the business location," says Franz Schellhorn from Agenda Austria. We finally need to get going. "At a time when the economy is on fire, we need a government capable of acting as quickly as possible. We need to set an example for the location quickly. Away with the climate bonus or educational leave, for example."

"The location is burdened with excessive costs that nobody wants to bear. You get the impression that the negotiators haven't heard the shot yet. If you start with higher taxes again, you won't be able to close the door." Addendum: "We only ever talk about taxes that are too low, like property tax. Not about taxes that are far too high by international standards." The country has lost touch in the rankings, lagging far behind the top 10 countries such as Switzerland and the Netherlands.

Solidarity payments from high earners - limited in time
Like Schellhorn, Friedrich Schneider is no friend of new taxes in Austria, the "country with the highest taxes". The German professor and tax expert at the University of Linz advocates the 7-year consolidation plan ("Austria can't cope with 3 years, that would be a complete cure"), with 80 percent on the expenditure side and 20 percent on the revenue side. In the short term, Schneider also proposes solidarity payments from higher earners as part of the budget restructuring imposed by the EU.

"However, this must be limited by law until around 2027. This could save a few billion more." This worked well in Germany during the reconstruction of the East. And - a pension reform should finally be tackled. The biggest billion-euro chunk in Austria. "Simply work until 65 as planned. That would also save debates about wealth taxes, which would bring too little anyway."