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After the president of the National Council, Wolfgang Sobotka, today the focus is once again on the politicians of the ÖVP: the former Finance Minister Hartwig Löger and the former Vice-President of the ÖVP Bettina Glatz-Kremsner. “Die Presse” reports live from the Hofburg.
In May 2019, the so-called “Ibiza Video” turned Austria’s political landscape upside down. It led to the outbreak of the turquoise blue coalition and catapulted the then FPÖ chief and vice chancellor, Heinz-Christian Strache, to the bench. The political reevaluation now takes place a year later in the Ibiza parliamentary inquiry commission. Reports of “Die Presse” live, Details about today’s respondents and today’s topics can be found below the ticker.
The live ticker to continue reading:
Who are today’s respondents?
- Hartwig Löger: The former ÖVP Finance Minister was part of the turquoise blue government team that took office in 2017 and, following the collapse of the coalition in May 2019, was head of government for a short period. At the Causa Casinos, which emerged from the Ibiza investigation, Löger is now listed as a suspect. Investigators’ suspicion: The then Finance Minister may have lobbied to convert FPÖ politician Peter Sidlo into CFO of Casinos Austria AG (Casag), under pressure from the Novomatic gaming group, which in turn is said to have expected business licenses. Löger rejects the accusations.
- Bettina Glatz-Kremsner: The casino manager became Sebastian Kurz’s deputy at the top of the ÖVP in 2017 and was part of the turquoise steering group in the government negotiations with the FPÖ. At the end of April 2019, he resigned from his position at ÖVP; in May of the same year she became General Director of Casag and President of the Lottery Council. Glatz-Kremsner received a severance pay of 1.6 million euros for the change of her executive position at Casag, which was subsequently transferred to Sidlo, to the general management. Sidlo already knew Glatz-Kremsner back then: from working together at the National Bank (OeNB). The two were sent to the OeNB General Council by Türkis-Blau in 2018.
What topics are on the agenda?
- Usually, the questions in the U-Committee revolve around the FPÖ and its former boss Heinz-Christian Strache, who stumbled upon the “Ibiza video” in May 2019 and subsequently from the party and its government party. This week is different. SPÖ and Neos focus on the role of ÖVP: What did the former coalition partner of the FPÖ know about the appointments in Casinos Austria and other state-owned companies? The opposition parties would like an answer to that.
- Y: there was one Deal at the casinos? The suspicion: the gaming company Novomatic could have given a seat to a FPÖ politician in exchange for obtaining licenses, with the knowledge of the ÖVP.
