Vienna elections: Ludwig remains silent on the coalition issue – Vienna elections

The mayor of Vienna and the main candidate of the SPÖ, Michael Ludwig, does not want to look at the letters a week before the Vienna elections on the issue of the coalition. Transportation issues – there were several Zores here recently with the current partner of the green government – should not be too decisive for him, he said in the ORF “press hour” on Sunday.

When asked about internal disagreements about the “car-free” city center or emerging bike lanes and asked whether the SPÖ and the Greens are therefore not very different on traffic issues, Ludwig said: “Yes, it is possible. But to be honest: we have one of the biggest health crises We are going through very difficult tipping points in the company location and in the job market. So, for me, three emerging bike lanes nor they are not even noteworthy in reality. “

He has nothing against the containment of traffic in the city center if it is implemented in accordance with the constitution and after involving all those affected. And the city chief said: “The emerging bikeways will not stand in the way of a coalition, but they will not promote a coalition either. There are other issues that are important, for example, what will happen in the economy.”

Here, Ludwig once again referred to the holding company “Stolz auf Wien”, through which federal capital can, if necessary, take a limited stake in companies that have plummeted due to the crown crisis. Following mineral oil trading company Adamol and jewelry maker Frey Wille, the mayor has announced that the city will also join a “well-known suburban cafe.” And he promised transparency in the form of a participation report, which companies will continue to be considered and according to what criteria the selection will be made.

Regarding the crown-related challenges in urban tourism, Ludwig called on the federal government to advocate for a uniform approach to travel advisories at the EU level. The mayor wants to discuss the situation this year with the Christmas markets, which are also very popular with foreign guests, in a round table with the Chamber of Commerce and the organizers in mid-October and so after the elections. It is important to consider the conditions under which they will take place and how many venues will actually be used in light of the expected absence of many tourists in this year’s winter season.

The focus of ORF’s emergence was, of course, also the city’s crown management and the repeated criticism of the slow testing and contact tracing processes. Ludwig referred once again to the increase in personnel that had already started in the area or to new test tracks, such as the gargle method or the test streets. “We know we have to go faster,” admitted the head of the Vienna SPÖ. However, he rejected the accusation that he had fallen asleep in a foreseeable development: the increase in the number of cases in the fall: “It was predictable that this would develop so quickly and dynamically, however, I think it was also a surprise for The experts”.

Ludwig defended that Vienna acts more strictly in schools than the federal government and sends an entire class to quarantine if an infection is discovered. The federal government is always demanding stricter measures from the federal capital and: “For us, health is in the foreground. We know this is a challenge for parents, but we try to get involved in schools as soon as possible.” He referred to the mobile test kits for this area, which had been presented together with the Ministry of Education.

When asked about the goal of the election, Ludwig was humble again: “It would be nice if I got closer to the last result.” In 2015, the SPÖ under Michael Häupl achieved 39.6 percent in the Vienna elections, its second worst result to date. Polls currently see the Reds well above the 40 percent mark. That, unlike the political competition, the federal party or its leader Pamela Rendi-Wagner does not play a role in the red election campaign in Vienna, Ludwig said: “It is not competing in Vienna. I find it strange that other parties are I need to send to politicians who have no intention of going to City Hall. ” The mayor speculated that they apparently had little confidence in their respective top candidates.

He has no plans to position a Viennese comrade as Rendi-Wagner’s successor after the elections, Ludwig said: “I am proud to have a very good government team, as well as the state party secretariat and the club leadership are doing very well. staffed. and I would not like to be separated from the women and men who walk this path with me. In any case, he does not expect any personnel renewals in the federal SPÖ in the current or next year, the Viennese party chairman said.

Read all about the 2020 Vienna elections here