Austria’s economy is on the ground. Three years in a row, negative growth had to be accepted, the economic forecasts are also dark. “Anyone who believes that the government’s program can find concrete measures with which the economy can create the turnaround. Barbara Kolm, FPÖ budget speaker NABG. Arnold Schiefer, FPÖ energy spokesman NABG. Axel Kassegger and FPÖ SMU spokesman NABG. Michael Fürtbauer. The FPÖ therefore brought in a number of applications in the National Council yesterday to bring about the positive impulse for the domestic economy.
Austria is a high tax country, which also suffers enormously. In order to boost investments, the FPÖ demanded the expansion of the investment contribution to 15 percent, for investments of up to 1.5 million euros to twenty percent, limited to two years. This is intended to facilitate an investment in the companies.
A measure that affects economy and households is the high energy prices, which are also kept up artificially by the electricity tax. Electricity tax in Austria is 1,500 percent higher than the EU-minute tax height provides. It is 552 percent more when it comes to giving natural gas. In its application, the FPÖ therefore called for both the reduction in sales tax to electricity, gas, network fees and the associated levies (e.g. electricity, natural gas delivery, CO2 prices, EAG contributions) and the return of the electricity and natural gas tax itself to the EU minimum.
The energy-intensive industry is particularly suffering from the high electricity prices-here too, Austria is disadvantageous in the EU comparison. The electricity price costs compensation law, which was only introduced for 2022, is therefore to be revived and extended by 2030. On the one hand, indirect CO2 costs are to be compensated for and on the other hand, the emigration of companies abroad should be prevented.
The fourth freedom application aims at a new codification of the trade regulations. The existing order is over -regulated, confusing and not citizen -friendly – the 2019 Court of Auditors also found. Nevertheless, there have been no changes so far. That should change. The FPÖ calls for a fundamental reform and new codification of the trade regulations in order to get a simplified profession, reduction of bureaucratic hurdles as well as a modern and user -friendly rules.
Last but not least, the economy suffers from enormously high non -wage costs. These make up for 27 percent of the work in Austria – for comparison: in Germany the value is 23, and only 13 percent in Denmark. In addition to a reduction in non-wage costs, the FPÖ also demands the deletion of chamber levy 2. This levy, which depends on the wage amount and therefore increasing with inflation, high wage and salary degrees, led to a burden on domestic entrepreneurs and compulsory members in the WKÖ of around 433 million euros.
“The government likes to claim that the FPÖ can only criticize, but have no solutions. These four applications alone prove the opposite. We have the right concepts to relieve and strengthen Austria’s economy,” says Kolm, Schiefer, Kassegger and Fürtbauer, who are excited to see whether the government parties will take up the freedom ideas and concepts.