The new governor of Vorarlberg has criticised the government for its “politics of announcements”. Markus Wallner of the People’s Party (ÖVP) – who succeeded Herbert Sausgruber as head of the western province in December 2011 – said yesterday (Thurs) the federal government coalition of Social Democrats (SPÖ) and ÖVP must reset its course. He appealed […]
The opposition plans to organise a series of extraordinary parliamentary meetings to raise the pressure on the People’s Party (ÖVP). Members of parliament (MPs) representing the ÖVP in the anti-corruption commission dramatically reduced the number of witnesses to be questioned concerning the Federal Workers’ and Employees’ Association (ÖAAB) controversy. A magazine published by the organisation, […]
Bank Austria (BA) chief Willibald Cernko has admitted being “proud” of how his finance institute performed in the past years. The banker pointed out that BA was the only leading Austrian bank which did not sustain annual losses since the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008. The bankruptcy of the US investment bank kicked off […]
The opposition has turned its guns on the government over the latest savings package. The Social Democrats (SPÖ) and the conservative People’s Party (ÖVP) hope to save around 28 billion Euros in the coming years thanks to the budget consolidation pact. The package was passed in parliament yesterday (Weds). The opposition did not approve the […]
Hypo Group Alpe Adria (HGAA) supervisory board head Johannes Ditz has said he is confident that the bank will manage to sell two affiliates. The former Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) economy minister said today (Thurs) HGAA managed to “get rid of all possible risk factors” which could endanger a sale of its Austrian and Italian […]
Bank Austria (BA) chief Willibald Cernko has welcomed plans to create a bank bankruptcy regulation. Austrian law currently fails to feature rules which determine under which circumstances a financial institute with headquarters in the alpine country can start regulated insolvency procedures. Real economy businesses benefit from such an option on a regular basis. It is […]
The government wants to reform teachers’ service law. Social Democratic (SPÖ) Education Minister Claudia Schmied and Finance Minister Maria Fekter of the People’s Party (ÖVP) reportedly agree that teachers should get higher wages in their first years on the job. Such measures would affect the incomes of new teachers but leave the salaries of people […]
No Austrian university has made the new Times Higher Education Ranking. Vienna University, Austria’s biggest higher education institution, was the only Austrian university listed last year. It was part of the group of universities placed between 91st and 100th in the Times Higher Education Ranking of 2011. The study includes detailed information on the world’s […]
Hypo Group Alpe Adria (HGAA) has made a profit for the first time in four years. The struggling finance institute – which had to be nationalized in December 2009 – said it managed to make profits of 59 million Euros last year. The Klagenfurt-based bank headed by Gottwald Kranebitter sustained a loss of more than […]
The vast majority of Austrians would appreciate the planned European Parliament (EP) voting law reform, according to a new study. The Austrian Society for European Policies (Österreichische Gesellschaft für Europapolitik, ÖGfE) announced today (Fri) that 60 per cent of Austrians wanted to elect the next president of the European Commission (EC) in a direct ballot. […]