
The liberal NEOS party has pulled out of coalition talks with the People’s Party (ÖVP) and the Social Democrats (SPÖ) to form Austria’s next government, after months of negotiations. The party cited an inability to reach a compromise.
The announcement was made on Friday morning. Speaking at a press conference in Vienna, NEOS leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger said neither of the other parties had accepted NEOS’ proposed reforms to tackle Austria’s worsening economic crisis.
“I am seriously worried,” she said, adding that she had informed ÖVP leader and Chancellor Karl Nehammer, SPÖ leader Andreas Babler and President Alexander Van der Bellen of her decision. She also thanked them for the discussions, which continued until Thursday.
Meinl-Reisinger said disagreements over issues such as raising the retirement age, which NEOS supports, and balancing the budget had proven insurmountable. She accused the ÖVP and SPÖ of treating negotiations like “a bazaar,” trading topics without finding real solutions.
The ÖVP pinned the blame for NEOS’ withdrawal on the SPÖ. “The behaviour of certain factions within the SPÖ has brought about the current situation,” said ÖVP General Secretary Christian Stocker in a statement. “While some members of the Social Democrats have made constructive contributions, the backward-looking forces within the SPÖ have taken the upper hand in recent days,” he added.
Speaking to ORF, SPÖ Secretary General Klaus Seltenheim rejected the ÖVP’s accusations, claiming that NEOS had tried to push through 100% of their election programme with just 9% of the vote they secured in the September parliamentary elections. “Clearly, they have now realised that the task was a bit too much for them,” Seltenheim said.
What comes next remains uncertain. After September’s elections, which were won by the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ), the ÖVP and SPÖ together hold a slim majority of just one seat in Austria’s lower house of parliament, the National Council, which makes a two-party coalition between them seem unlikely.
Instead, there is growing speculation that they may look to bring in the Greens as a third partner. The Greens, who came fifth in the September elections behind NEOS, are currently the junior partner in the outgoing ÖVP-led coalition government.
All major parties have ruled out forming a coalition with the FPÖ, and if the Greens refuse to enter coalition talks, the alternative could be fresh elections.