Snow Patrol v Far Right Austrian Party

Categories
General News

Austria’s far right Freedom Party (FPOe) is being sued by British rock band Snow Patrol for the illegal use of one of their songs in an election campaign. Universal Music, which represents the band, has launched legal action against the Freedom Party for using the song ‘Run’ without permission. It featured in a video which […]

Lower Austrian election date fixed

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Politics

Lower Austria’s regional Governor Erwin Pröll has announced plans for the elections in the region to take place next year on 3 March. Announcing the decision he said that the work of the local government would continue right up until the last minute and that the election campaign that followed, which would probably start on […]

Information campaign causes great passport demand

Categories
General News

Officials in Salzburg are dealing with a flood of demand at passport offices after a campaign by the city to raise awareness of new passport regulations. After the 15th of June children may no longer travel on their parents’ passports according to the new EU-wide ruling of one person, one passport. All new travel documents […]

Styrian heart beats on the Vienna Rathausplatz

Categories
Culinary Guide

The Styrian spring has arrived – of all places in the Vienna Rathausplatz. From today 12 April until 16 April everything in the town hall square will be decidedly Styrian. Alongside traditional Styrian music the bands will also be accompanied by a violinist and there is also a tap dancing group from Krieglach/Alpl. The whole […]

Morocco posters all removed says FPÖ

Categories
General News

The Freedom party official responsible for an election poster campaign that urged love for all things good and Austrian rather than thieving Moroccans has apologised and had all the posters removed. The slogan “Heimatliebe statt Marokkaner-Diebe” on the Freedom Party placards for local elections in Innsbruck translates as “Love of your home country instead of […]

Hofer sceptical about ÖVP’s future impact

Categories
Politics

A renowned political strategist has warned that the People’s Party (ÖVP) could be “pulverised” in the approaching election campaign. Thomas Hofer writes in a guest article for political magazine profil that the conservative party might find it difficult to position itself in the expected war of words between Social Democratic (SPÖ) Chancellor Werner Faymann and […]

Czech collared over cannabis transfer

Categories
General News

A Czech man has been arrested after traffic policemen discovered dozens of marijuana plants in his car during a traffic check in Lower Austria.Officers found 83 hashish seedlings in the boot of the 32-year-old’s vehicle during a campaign in which hundreds of drivers were checked on the A5 northern motorway yesterday afternoon (Weds).The man told […]

More checks but fewer drink-driving penalties

Categories
General News

Fewer drivers were charged for drink-driving last year than in 2009, it has been announced.The federal interior ministry, which is in charge of Austria’s police units, said today (Fri) that 37,519 drunken drivers were fined or reported to prosecutors in 2010. The ministry said that more than 41,100 drivers were caught breaching the Austrian legal […]

Right-wing triumph in Vienna shocks federal coalition partners

Categories
Politics

The Social Democrats (SPÖ) lost their absolute majority in the Vienna city parliament for the second time since World War Two while the right-wing Freedom Party (FPÖ) celebrates massive gains.The SPÖ garnered 44.2 per cent yesterday (Sun), down from the 49.1 per cent it won five years ago.The People’s Party (ÖVP) failed to remain the […]

Vienna vote has its battle of the comic books

Categories
Politics

The Viennese Social Democrats (SPÖ) have presented their own election campaign comic after cartoons created by the Freedom Party (FPÖ) caused outcry last month.The city’s SPÖ – who has a majority of city parliament seats – today (Weds) officially presented their own comic book which has already been handed out to potential voters in discos […]