With a test on the premises: ÖVP disputes over responsibility for controls



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According to Karl Nehammer, the shops or restaurants themselves have to control the rules of the crown. Tourism Minister Köstinger disagrees.

The plan to “break free” to visit shops and restaurants has sparked disagreements within the ÖVP. While Interior Minister Karl Nehammer sees the respective operator responsible for verifying the tests, Tourism Minister Elisabeth Köstinger and the Economic Association reject precisely this. Health Minister Rudolf Anschober (Greens) announced Monday that legal provisions are still being worked on.

After the current lockdown, there should be an opportunity to participate in events or visit bars and shops using the corona test. Who controls this is still open. Only then is the question of control a problem. Anschober therefore called for “a little patience.”

Köstinger: hosts shouldn’t control

Köstinger made it clear before Christmas who should not verify, that is, the owners themselves. “The responsible authorities can carry out checks at any time and in any place to see if someone has ‘published’ a negative corona test. It would be absurd to carry this responsibility on the restaurant operators. That was never mentioned and it certainly will not be.” Also on Monday, Köstinger’s spokesman emphasized that the health authority was responsible. If their capacity is insufficient, the police must withdraw. In a statement, Köstinger stated that the verification of the negative corona tests will not be the responsibility of the restorers. The necessary regulations will be drawn up in close collaboration between health authorities and restaurateurs’ interest groups, he said.

Interior Minister Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) made it clear that normally the police would not carry out the control. Unlike Köstinger, it mainly recognizes the responsibility of the operators themselves, as well as the Chamber of Commerce or the labor inspectorate. In the “Krone”, Nehammer became even clearer: “I see it this way: Anyone who receives permission to run a business is responsible for what happens in their facilities. That would also be the case for local operators after the more free”. “

The department head doesn’t want to completely dismiss the fact that the executive will have to move here at one point or another. Health authorities may ask the police for random checks. However, by itself, a deployment is only planned if there is an escalation, for example, if a person refuses to leave a location even though they have not completed a corona test.

“It is not the work of entrepreneurs”

Confederation general secretary Kurt Egger was irritated by Nehammer’s remarks. “It is not the job of employees or employers to do the work of the police,” Egger said in a broadcast. Köstinger has already made it clear that this “definitely will not be the case.” Nehammer’s statements, however, “would unnecessarily disturb distributors, local operators and service providers,” the ÖVP politician told his friend from the party.

The SPÖ also criticized the Interior Minister. The Economy spokesman, Christoph Matznetter, also rejected the controls of the landowners and stated in a broadcast: “Gourmets and entrepreneurs are not deputies.

Main activities on New Year’s Eve

As for the New Year’s Eve celebrations, Nehammer announced that there will be targeted actions in the state police departments in those areas “where you have to look more closely.” There will also be increased pressure for border control due to entry regulations. The minister calls on the population to refrain from using pyrotechnics, plus those that have not been certified and have entered the country illegally: “The numbers of infections do not make a New Year’s party.”

(WHAT)

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