The Austrian chancellor resigned after the collapse of the coalition talks Politics news

Nehammer says his People’s Party does not support measures he believes will hurt the economy or new taxes.

Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said he would resign after talks between the country’s biggest centrist parties on forming a government without the collapse of the far-right Freedom Party (FPO).

Saturday’s announcement comes a day after the liberal Neos party withdrew from negotiations with Nehammer’s conservative People’s Party (OVP) and the Social Democrats (SPO).

“After the breakdown of the coalition talks, I will do the following: I will resign both as chancellor and party chairman of the People’s Party in the coming days,” he said.

In a video published on his social accounts, the outgoing chancellor said that the “long and honest” negotiations with the center-left had failed despite a common interest in defending the far right that was gaining ground.

Nehammer emphasized that his party does not support measures he believes will harm the economy or new taxes.

He said he would allow “an orderly transition” and railed against “radicals who do not offer a single solution to any problem, but live only by describing problems.”

The far-right Freedom Party (FPO) won the first parliamentary election in its history at the end of September with almost 30 percent of the votes.

But other parties refused to govern in a coalition with the Eurosceptic, Russia-friendly FPO and its leader Herbert Kickl, so did President Alexander Van der Bellen at the end of October. commissioned Nehammer to form a coalition.

Nehammer’s announcement comes after he still failed to reach an understanding with the Neos party.

The head of Neos, Beate Meinl-Reisinger, said that progress was impossible and that “fundamental reforms” had not been agreed.

After the chancellor’s exit, the OVP is expected to meet to discuss potential successors.

The political landscape remains uncertain in Austria, with no immediate possibility of forming a stable government due to ongoing differences between the parties.

The president can now appoint another leader and an interim government, as the parties try to find a way out of the impasse.

The next government in Austria faces the challenge of having to save between 18 and 24 billion euros ($18.5-24.7 billion), according to the European Commission.

The country’s economy has been in recession for the past two years, it is experiencing a rise in unemployment and its budget is 3.7 percent of the gross domestic product – above the European Union limit of 3 percent.