Austria's Greens vote to enter government with People's party
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Version 0 of 1. Untested left-right alliance may prove template for future coalition in Germany Members of Austria’s Green party voted on Saturday to join a new government led by the conservative former chancellor Sebastian Kurz, clearing the final hurdle for an untested national left-right alliance. The coalition pact approved by their party leadership and Kurz’s People’s party earlier this week was backed by 93% of Green delegates . Out of 264 delegates, only 15 voted against or abstained. Werner Kogler, the leader of the Greens, had urged delegates to put aside concerns about entering a coalition with Kurz’s conservatives and recognise the opportunity to make progress on issues such as cutting child poverty, increasing government transparency and combating climate change. He noted that months of negotiations with the People’s party had already produced a plan for a 2021 tax reform that emphasises environmental protection. “Big, fat, stinking diesel SUVs are going to get more expensive,” Kogler told the party meeting in Salzburg, citing the current wildfires in Australia as an example of natural disasters fuelled by climate change. The Greens want Austria to become carbon-neutral in 2040, a decade earlier than the EU’s target. The party made strong gains in September’s national election on the back of mounting concern about climate change. It took almost 14% of the vote, coming fourth behind the far-right Freedom party, the centre-left Social Democrats and Kurz’s party, which received more than 37% of the vote. The election became necessary after the collapse of Kurz’s previous coalition government with the Freedom party following the release of a video showing its then-leader, Heinz-Christian Strache, offering favours to a purported Russian investor. The Austrian coalition is being closely watched as a possible template for a future government in neighbouring Germany, where the Green party has also been riding high in recent polls. Support for Angela Merkel’s current coalition partner, the centre-left Social Democrats, has dropped to an all-time low. In the new Austrian government Kurz will reclaim the title of Europe’s youngest head of government, at 33. Kobler will become vice-chancellor and his fellow Green party member Leonore Gewessler will lead a new “super ministry” overseeing environment, energy and infrastructure. The 42-year-old was previously the political head of the environmental campaign group Global 2000. The Greens will also send the first Austrian of immigrant background into government. Alma Zadic, whose family fled to Austria from Bosnia when she was ten years old, will take the justice portfolio. The interim foreign minister, Alexander Schallenberg, will remain in post. Although not formally a member of the People’s party he has close ties to Kurz. |