One of the first acts was the confirmation of Health Minister Johannes Rauch as a member of the government, which was unanimous.
In his speech, Rauch emphasized that he approached his work with conviction, seriousness and fighting spirit. He not only wants to do his job as health but also social minister and raise his voice for those who are not doing so well. “I have the advantage, I’m 63, I have nothing more to lose, I don’t have to give a shit anymore, and that’s a good prerequisite,” he caused laughter among the around 290 delegates.
Video: The federal congress in the live stream
There was good news right at the beginning of the meeting: the party has been debt-free since the turn of the year, after having lost EUR 5 million after leaving the National Council three years ago. The plus is exactly 14,200 euros, reported finance officer Wolfgang Raback, if you include all bank accounts and the outstanding liabilities with the national organizations. The goal of being debt-free was thus achieved much earlier than expected, and one is now able to act in the challenging years to come, he said.
The most important items on the agenda are the speech and the re-election of Kogler as party leader. He has a record 99 percent of the delegate votes to defend. Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler is to be promoted to Kogler’s deputy. However, this will only take place after the party congress with an extended federal executive committee. Gewessler also spoke up. She spoke of challenging times and the immense dependence on fossil Russian energy that Austria had brought on itself. The big task is to get out of it. This was already achieved with oil in March, but it was much more difficult with natural gas.
The opening words at the federal congress were spoken by Olga Voglauer, state spokeswoman and top candidate of the Green Carinthia/Koroška. She has to fight a state election next year, it’s about moving back.
Source: Nachrichten
