06. 02. 12. - 15:44

Spindelegger upsets SPÖ

People’s Party (ÖVP) Vice Chancellor Michael Spindelegger has caused a stir by revealing details of the upcoming austerity package.

The foreign minister told the Kurier newspaper yesterday (Sun) new regulations would ensure no Austrian aged 50 or younger may retire due to invalidity. Almost 2.25 million Austrians received a pension last year. Around 330,000 are registered as invalidity pensioners. Health sector experts have appealed to the Social Democrats (SPÖ) and the ÖVP to check criteria and structures to avoid a further increase of costs – and a collapse of the public health sector.

Spindelegger also disclosed that pensioners’ representatives were offered two models to make cuts. The ÖVP chief said they could decide themselves how to contribute to the savings measures which should help restore the state budget until 2020. Spindelegger said yesterday details still had to be coordinated and navigated. The vice chancellor defended his decision to disclose details today. He told radio station Ö1: "I want to finish the talks soon. Every Austrian has a right to be informed how the measures affected them."

The ÖVP leader said people with comparably small pensions may keep benefiting from inflation compensations – if not to the same extent of the past years. This statement is certain to infuriate Labour Chamber (AK) and Trade Union (ÖGB) bosses – who warned from cutting back wages and pensions. The institutions said banks and rich Austrians must be taxed more than before to get Austria through the crisis. Pensioners’ representatives Karl Blecha and Andreas Khol agreed with the SPÖ-ÖVP administration some weeks ago to increase pensions by 2.7 per cent.

SPÖ Chancellor Werner Faymann criticised Spindelegger for exposing detailed measures. Faymann claimed today that some of the things Spindelegger revealed were not agreed on yet. The SPÖ leader said he disagreed with making individual points of the ongoing debate public – and stressed that pensions would not be frozen in the coming years despite the pressure to get the budget in order. Faymann also promised that retired people who received 1,000 Euros or less would not be affected by any kind of upcoming cutbacks.

Spindelegger admitted yesterday he was concerned that AK and ÖGB could manage to block measures his party and the SPÖ already agreed on. The vice chancellor underlined that all aspects he revealed had the approval of Faymann. Spindelegger praised the planned end to early and invalidity-caused retirements as the "great structural effect" of the government’s reform. Austrian men must work until 65 by law while women may retire five years earlier. Statistics show that male employees quit at 58.9 while women retire at 57.5 years on average.

The ÖVP chief underlined that he would not allow the reintroduction of a tax on inheritance. Spindelegger told the Kurier that he had no understanding for ideas to increasing the tax burden on assets. He added that there was no doubt nevertheless that the rich must contribute in some way as well. This statement appears to confirm speculations that SPÖ and ÖVP plan a mandatory solidarity contribution for people earning more than half a million Euros. The measure could be abolished in around three years’ time if the economic climate improved, according to sources close to the government.