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A frenzied tug of war between the Health Ministry and individual federal states over legal confusion and details is said to have been behind the latest mishap over Corona’s new measures Thursday night. The two regulatory texts were ready just three hours before the adjustment should have gone into effect, especially for private meetings and events.
Before that, many state and district authorities faced a flood of citizens wanting to know more about the new rules for private celebrations or events planned for the weekend. As an emergency brake, the Minister of Health, Rudi Anschober (Greens), has moved the deadline to Sunday at 0.00 a. Your home can answer all questions “understandably even for non-lawyers” on Sozialministerium.at.
- Video: The turquoise-green federal government has imposed more than a dozen crown ordinances on Austrians since the spring. More adjustment will apply from Sunday.
“Completely unprepared”
The matter was not over for the opposition: the SP leader, Pamela Rendi-Wagner, accused the government of presenting new measures last Monday “completely unprepared.” His friend from the party, the mayor of Linz Klaus Luger, compared the situation to the closing of spring. At the time, the announcements and actions would have agreed. Now government is “political marketing more important than content.” That is why he is losing people’s trust.
The boss of the FP club, Herbert Kickl, attested to the irresponsibility of the government in its purest form. For Neos health spokesman Gerald Loacker, “embarrassment” includes not only the prescription, but also the strategy with rapid antigen tests.
Anschober, who was not supported by a senior representative for coalition partner ÖVP on Friday, defended the approach. There has been a first draft since Monday. In the end, “a highly professional work was presented.” For him it is “crucial that the measures work”. That was exactly one of the reasons for the delays. Because the two ordinances “would drastically affect many areas of the lives of millions of people.” It is not decisive whether they are effective a day earlier or later. A proper vote could “take longer.” In the end, the constitutional service and “outside lawyers” participated in the examination.
Despite the “very serious situation”, the objective remains to avoid a second blockade, unlike some neighboring countries and regions. Currently, Anschober sees “the biggest risk” in small events and celebrations. “For example after the football game, when victory is celebrated or defeat is spilled”, here the regulation applies. Heading into the fall break, the minister’s call is: “If you can, stay home.” Even “Halloween celebrations, which often go haywire,” shouldn’t be held again until 2021.
Vorarlberg at its capacity limit
On Friday, the Interior Ministry and the Health Ministry reported 2,571 new corona cases, 552 of them in Upper Austria, both record highs. The state of Vorarlberg announced that contact tracing was at the limit of its capacity, so it is no longer fully operated and is now focused on high-risk groups.
A 90-year-old crown patient with previous illnesses from the Grieskirchen district died at the Wels-Grieskirchen Clinic. (luc)
