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The consulting firm Kurz ruled out that the funds from the authorities or public companies would go to Antonella Mei-Pochtler Advisory GmbH, which she founded in 2018.
08.37, March 17, 2021
Chancellor advisor Antonella Mei-Pochtler is only aware of the Ballhausplatz project, that is, the unofficial campaign strategy that helped Vice President Sebastian Kurz enter the Chancellery in 2017, only through the media. “That was never a topic of discussion,” said the head of the BKA’s strategy department entitled “Think Austria”, which Kurz had already advised during the election campaign. Earlier, former President and Vice Chancellor Reinhold Mitterlehner reported on the turquoise “donation rallies.”
In early 2017, at Kurz’s request, he organized expert discussions with the ÖVP Political Academy on the topics of location strategies and competitiveness, Mei-Pochtler described. She then participated in the coalition negotiations after the 2017 National Council elections as an expert on location issues. These were “mostly” general competitiveness issues, such as lowering the tax burden or cutting red tape. Specific company concerns were not an issue. “At no time have there been such conversations.” He also learned about “ex post” publications, “mainly from the media.” She “was not involved at any time.”
ÖVP donors
The consulting firm Kurz ruled out that the funds from the authorities or public companies would go to Antonella Mei-Pochtler Advisory GmbH, which she founded in 2018. Also, that “major ÖVP donors” could have commissioned the consulting agency. “I also don’t know who the ÖVP donors are,” he emphasized again. According to Mei-Pochtler, it was also new that Wirecard founder Markus Braun had donated to the party.
“Free” consulting contract
Mei-Pochtler referred to one of her working relationships with Kurz “Free” consulting contractthat he had with the Chancellery until the end of the first chancellery. He also organized the meetings, for example at the ÖVP political academy, on a voluntary basis. You have invested up to about 60 percent of your time in your commitment.
She was “somewhat astonished” that they invited her to the Ibiza-U-Committee, “as I it has nothing to do with the events in ibiza“Mei-Pochtler said in her opening statement. She then explained her field of activity at the Federal Chancellery. In March 2018 she asked Kurzto establish the strategy and planning unit “Think Austria” in the BKA “ and contribute their experience from the strategy area. Until 2017 she was CEO of Boston Consulting Group (BCG).
“Think of Austria”
“Think Austria” is a small team of five people. “As a personnel unit, we report directly to the Federal Chancellor.” The area of responsibility includes the preparation of cross-cutting issues and international analysis for the Federal Chancellor in preparation for his international travels. “Strategic units of this type exist in many other countries such as Singapore, Germany and France. These examples have also been The employees have seen themselves selected. She does not have the perception that some people who are on the soundboard of “Think Austria” are mentioned in the “Ballhausplatz Project”.
Mailbox continuation
That the “Think of Austria” mailbox continued to function after the Kurz government was removed by a vote of Acting Chancellor Brigitte Bierlein, It was due to the fact that inquiries from abroad should not result in anything, argued Mei-Pochtler. For the U Committee, it analyzed the 9,530 emails from “Think Austria” and verified whether they were relevant to the research topic. She only broadcast one, as noted by the leader of the SPÖ parliamentary group, Jan Krainer.
Mitterlehner had already given an idea of the change of power in the Popular Party to Turquoise in 2017 and the associated search for supporters in the election campaign. He does not believe that the laws could have been “bought” with his successor as party leader, Sebastian Kurz. So “stupid” that it can be shown that someone buys laws, one is “neither in Europe nor in the banana states”. Rather, the former ÖVP president spoke of a A “biotope” made up of fundraising and a culture to get an open ear from politicians. But he also “doesn’t want to criticize donation in general,” says Mitterlehner: “Not only do people who donate want to secure a personal advantage, they also want to donate to a political program.”
Event at Schloss Reifnitz
Since the end of January 2017, it was clear to him that he would no longer be the top candidate. The “donation rallies” that Kurz organized and which Mitterlehner also refers to in his book, he first noticed in August 2016. At that moment he heard that there had been an event at the Carinthian Castle in Reifnitz with the manager Siegfried Wolf and other businessmen. Subsequently, other similar events occurred. These were organized by different hosts or companies, including a bank. You don’t want to attract these people to the media audience., mostly because he couldn’t remember exactly either, says Mitterlehner: “And I don’t have a laptop either, I’m already over 60 years old.”
Not a penny officially received
However, under his presidency, the party did not officially receive a penny in July. “It didn’t matter to me either.” In his opinion, this allows “three alternatives”. One of them is that donors have been contacted but not paid. One second that they paid for at a later date. The third possibility is that the donations were sent to a platform outside the party structure, according to Mitterlehner: “But we have to find out.”
The third respondent is Tuesday Bernhard Perner A former cabinet employee of the Ministry of Finance, who works in the management of the state holding company ÖBAG, was invited.
