© ORF / Franz Neumayr

30. 12. 09. - 15:00

• more General News news
• RSS Feed General News

30. 12. 09. - 15:00

BZÖ leaders claim FPK 'nervous' revolt might fail

By Thomas Hochwarter

BZÖ general secretary Stefan Petzner has said former BZÖ Carinthia leader Uwe Scheuch has shown signs of "insecurity" over cooperation plans with the FPÖ.

Petzner said today (Weds) he was still optimistic the two right-wing rivals would not unite at provincial level and in the federal parliament.

He claimed he had seen a "certain insecurity" with Uwe Scheuch who recently revealed the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ) would cooperate with the Freedom Party (FPÖ) in the province of Carinthia.

Scheuch and FPÖ boss Heinz-Christian Strache also announced they would set up a new delegation in the federal parliament formed by the BZÖ’s Carinthian MPs called "Die Freiheitlichen in Kärnten" or FPK.

Scheuch explained the Carinthian BZÖ would be called FPK from now on. Federal BZÖ leader Josef Bucher reacted by attacking Scheuch and Strache for having launched an "ice-cold revolt".

Political analysts said after the cooperation was announced that this could mean the end of the BZÖ as polls have shown much stronger support for the FPÖ in all Austrian provinces. Experts stressed the fact that the BZÖ depended on their powerful standing in Carinthia in all federal elections.

But there was some doubt over whether Scheuch and Strache would be able to form a sixth delegation in the federal parliament when its president warned she would carefully check such applications.

Social Democrat (SPÖ) Barbara Prammer explained she would keep a close eye on the possible foundation of the FPK delegation, stressing garnering subsidies must not be its main aim.

Federal parliament delegations receive at least one million Euros in state subsidies every year – but only if a new delegation represents policies significantly different from already existing delegations.

Political experts have said the parliamentary president could reject a foundation application since both Scheuch and FPÖ boss Strache have far-right policies.

BZÖ leader Josef Bucher said a petition launched in Carinthia asking BZÖ members whether they want to unite with the FPÖ at provincial level and join the FPK would go "very well".

BZÖ general secretary Stefan Petzner said he was optimistic the FPK would eventually not be set up after the federal parliament’s Christmas break since Maximilian Linder, Martin Strutz, Josef Jury – the three BZÖ MPs who signalled to join it – were as "insecure and nervous as Scheuch".

Petzner added at least five MPs were needed to form a delegation. The BZÖ – which was founded by late FPÖ leader Jörg Haider in 2005 – currently has 21 MPs.

BZÖ leader Josef Bucher meanwhile attacked the FPK for not having a "legal fundament". Bucher said he feared the planned provincial summit on 16 January would "go down undemocratically".

FPÖ Carinthia chief Harald Jannach said today it was too early to decide whether the FPÖ’s branch in the province would join the FPK.

Jannach said he would await the FPK’s summit before making any decisions.

The developments come days after Dorothea Haider, the mother of late right-wing icon Jörg Haider, claimed her son had never considered teaming up with the FPÖ again.

The 91-year-old told the Kronen Zeitung she hoped BZÖ chief Bucher managed to keep the BZÖ together and strong.

Austrian Times

Related articles: right-wing Austria

1. Nazi era mass grave discovered in Graz

   » General News 2010-03-11

   The bodies of 77 people were probably buried by the Nazis on the grounds of Graz’ Belgier barracks, where the Nazi SS’ Wetzelsdorf barracks was located, it emerged yesterday (Weds).

2. Szene Wien cancels concert linked to neo-Nazis

   » Panorama 2010-03-11

   A neo-Nazi gig has been cancelled after club bosses found out the orientation of the groups’ music.

3. OSCE to monitor presidential election

   » General News 2010-03-10

   The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) will send election observers to Austria for the first time since World War II to monitor next month’s presidential elections.

4. Carinthian Slovene organisation opts for self-dissolution

   » General News 2010-03-10

   The Council of Carinthian Slovenes’ executive committee voted yesterday (Tues) in favour of its dissolution, head Karel Smolle announced.

5. Mauthausen wall defaced again

   » General News 2010-03-08

   The outer wall of the former Nazi concentration and death camp at Mauthausen, Upper Austria, was defaced again last Friday night, police said.

6. Rosenkranz 'condemns Nazi crimes'

   » General News 2010-03-08

   Barbara Rosenkranz, head of the Freedom Party’s (FPÖ) Lower Austrian branch, said today (Mon) she wanted to disassociate herself from Nazi ideology in a reaction to criticism of her running for president.

7. Schönborn and Leitl rule out voting Rosenkranz

   » General News 2010-03-05

   Vienna Archbishop Christoph Cardinal Schönborn said today (Fri) he could rule out voting for the Freedom Party’s (FPÖ) presidential election candidate Barbara Rosenkranz.

8. Facebook group shut as users call for Nazi camp reopening

   » General News 2010-03-05

   A Facebook group calling for the "reopening" of Austrian concentration camp Mauthausen was taken offline after winning more than 13,000 members, officials have said.

9. BZÖ calls for tougher immigration laws

   » General News 2010-03-03

   The debate on immigration statistics and soaring unemployment figures is set to intensify as the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ) today (Weds) called for a "foreigner check".

10. Court reduces Holocaust denier's sentence

    » General News 2010-03-02

    Holocaust denier Gerd Honsik has had his prison sentence reduced from five to four years by the Appeals Senate of Vienna’s Higher Regional Court (OLG) yesterday (Mon).

Related articles: political scandals

1. Car fuel prices lower than the EU average

   » General News 2010-03-12

   The prices of petrol and diesel-fuel in Austria are lower than the EU average, the Economics Ministry said today (Fri).

2. Nazi era mass grave discovered in Graz

   » General News 2010-03-11

   The bodies of 77 people were probably buried by the Nazis on the grounds of Graz’ Belgier barracks, where the Nazi SS’ Wetzelsdorf barracks was located, it emerged yesterday (Weds).

3. Lower Austria 'invested €40 mn in disgraced Madoff fund'

   » Business 2010-03-11

   Lower Austria has invested 40 million Euros in disgraced American Bernard Madoff’s Alpha Prime fund, says a report in today’s (Thurs) Der Standard newspaper.

4. OSCE to monitor presidential election

   » General News 2010-03-10

   The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) will send election observers to Austria for the first time since World War II to monitor next month’s presidential elections.

5. Carinthian Slovene organisation opts for self-dissolution

   » General News 2010-03-10

   The Council of Carinthian Slovenes’ executive committee voted yesterday (Tues) in favour of its dissolution, head Karel Smolle announced.

6. Insurance branch tax 'will mainly affect customers'

   » Business 2010-03-10

   Customers would be the most affected party if the government decides to set up a new tax for insurance companies, a top branch representative has warned.

7. VIDC calls on Austria to shelter Iranian dissidents

   » General News 2010-03-10

   The Vienna Institute for International Dialogue and Cooperation (VIDC) called on the Austrian government today (Weds) to give refuge to Iranian dissidents.

8. Military frontier patrols useless, says report

   » General News 2010-03-09

   Military patrols of Austria’s eastern frontiers are practically useless in terms of increasing public security, the Federal Audit Office (RH) said yesterday (Mon).

9. US military behind Haiti quake, says Innsbruck scientist

   » General News 2010-03-09

   Innsbruck political scientist Claudia von Werlhof has accused the USA of being behind the Haitian earthquake in January, it emerged today (Tues).

10. Mauthausen wall defaced again

    » General News 2010-03-08

    The outer wall of the former Nazi concentration and death camp at Mauthausen, Upper Austria, was defaced again last Friday night, police said.

Avalanche claims another victim in Styria
A 30-year-old snowboarder died in an avalanche on Saturday near Aflenz in Styria’s Bruck an der Mur district, police said yesterday (Sun).

Older people may benefit from being slightly overweight
Being slightly overweight may protect older people from potentially dangerous infections, a study by Vienna Medical University’s Institute for Social Medicine has concluded.

Student saved from avalanche
A student was saved by her mates on Saturday when they dug her out of the snow after she was caught in an avalanche, police said.

Austria 'might help' Greece, says minister
People’s Party (ÖVP) Finance Minister Josef Pröll said on Saturday that Austria might play a secondary role in helping almost bankrupt Greece.

Rapid win Vienna derby
Rapid Vienna retained their chances of winning a 33rd league title after beating city rivals Austria Vienna in yesterday’s 292nd Viennese derby.

Austrian men have the most sex partners
Austrian men have the most sex partners in the world, according to the British newspaper The Sun.

Kaltenbrunner's assault on Mount Everest called into question
Upper Austrian extreme mountain climber Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner’s planned assault on Mount Everest (8,848 metres) could be thwarted because of Chinese law, according to today’s edition (Mon) of the newspaper Oberösterreichische Nachrichten.

Toddler survives fall from window
A two-year-old girl who fell three metres from the window of her bedroom on Saturday, was unhurt after landing on a blanket of snow, police say.

Perv doc pays inmates for porn pics
A 43-year-old doctor who paid mental patients for pornographic photos has been arrested in Wiener Neustadt, Lower Austria, reports yesterday’s edition (Sun) of the newspaper Kurier.

Calls for ÖSV reform as poor World Cup season ends
Calls for reforms within the Austrian Skiing Association (ÖSV) have been made after a disappointing World Cup season ended yesterday (Sun).