Austria’s Chancellor Karl Nehammer wants to resign as head of government and head of the conservative ÖVP. After the failure of the coalition negotiations, he will withdraw from these posts in the coming days, he said in a video message. After the liberal Neos withdrew from three-way talks about a coalition with the ÖVP and the social democratic SPÖ on Friday, the ÖVP and SPÖ had on Saturday tried in vain to continue the negotiations as a couple.
“It is obvious that the destructive forces in the SPÖ have gained the upper hand,” said Nehammer, confirming the end of these talks. He emphasized that the ÖVP would not agree to any program that was anti-business or anti-performance. At the same time, Nehammer made it clear that he was still not prepared to hold coalition talks with the right-wing FPÖ under Herbert Kickl. “It is my deep conviction that radicals do not offer a solution to a single problem,” said Nehammer. The business wing of his party, however, prefers a coalition with the FPÖ rather than with the SPÖ. The FPÖ won the election in September. The three center parties then tried to forge a coalition and keep the right out of power. If there are new elections, the FPÖ could expect an even clearer victory than last, according to recent surveys.
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