SPÖ leader Alois Stöger

“Hackers are the ‘Gschnapsten’ with blue and black”

The "middle class", such as the workers at Voestalpine, would have nothing to laugh about under Blue-Black, the SPÖ suspects.

(Bild: Wenzel Markus)

Pressure from the industrial wing of the ÖVP is said to have led to the coalition negotiations with the SPÖ being broken off - a topsy-turvy world for interim red party leader Alois Stöger. After all, his party stands for a strong industry, which he underpins with a list of demands.  

On Wednesday afternoon, Andreas Babler arrived shortly after Alois Stöger's media appointment at the annual kick-off meeting of the regional SPÖ at the Jägermayrhof education center on the Freinberg in Linz. It can be assumed that the federal party leader was nevertheless informed of the contents of the press conference during the retreat: a list of demands from the Upper Austrian SPÖ to strengthen domestic industry.

Five-point program
The interim red state party leader sees five areas of action for Upper Austria: promoting new forms of energy such as hydrogen; a permanent reduction in energy costs, including through renewable energy sources; expansion and affordability - keyword: climate ticket - of public transport; more government focus on innovation and research; protection of jobs, including through a task force with all relevant players.

We are calling on the German government to set up a transformation and energy transition fund with a volume of 20 billion euros.

Alois Stöger, Interimsvorsitzender SPÖ OÖ

"The backbone of our prosperity"
Stöger presented the program side by side with what could soon be the new strong man in Linz, the winner of the first round of the mayoral election, Dietmar Prammer. For the provincial capital in particular, industry is essential as the "backbone of our prosperity". However, he believes that the current FPÖ and ÖVP coalition negotiators "do not yet have the will to protect the industrial location".

Sticking point in coalition negotiations
The point of view is interesting in that the business and industry wing of the ÖVP rebelled against a coalition with the SPÖ, which is said to have ultimately led to the end of the black-red negotiations. So would Babler have had more chances with the ÖVP with the demands paper presented on Wednesday?

"People at work who have achieved nothing"
Stöger doesn't think so, because: "The people from the Federation of Austrian Industry no longer know their own role. There are people at work who have achieved nothing, but have only inherited and prefer to launch risky political experiments." If the IV has its way, "the middle class" should provide the service, says Stöger. One thing is certain for him. "The hackers are the 'Gschnapsten' with blue and black."