During the discussion of the people's climate change petition in the Environment Committee of the National Council on Tuesday, the turquoise-green government planned to submit a motion for a resolution for “important milestones” for more climate protection in Austria. The cornerstones are the introduction of a climate council, a climate cabinet and ensuring the climate protection billion by 2030, as Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) said. SPÖ and NEOS did not want to approve the request.
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According to Gewessler, “a really nice proposal to implement the people's climate change initiative” was successful. This was signed by more than 380,000 people in the summer of 2020. As requested by the referendum, the motion includes the creation of a climate council in which at least 100 citizens can actively participate in climate policy. Lukas Hammer, climate spokesman for the Greens and committee chairman, had a kind of “mini-Austria” in mind: “People from all parts of the population living here will sit down with scientific support to discuss solutions to the greatest challenge of our time and specific proposals to do, “he said.
There are also plans to create a climate protection cabinet to which Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) and the Environment Minister belong. This cabinet is supposed to ensure that “climate protection laws and regulations are incorporated and that all members of the government and federal states pull together,” said Gewessler.
The establishment of a scientific climate advisory board is also planned to check compliance with the CO2 budget and “issue specific recommendations” in the event of possible misconduct. This advisory board is to have its own office and “will come very close to the climate audit office required by the climate protection referendum,” said Hammer. The extent to which the recommendations then have to be followed should be precisely formulated in the planned climate law, which, according to Gewessler, should go into the assessment “before summer”.
And another institution is in the application: namely that of a “Climate Responsibility Fund”. This is to ensure that the money raised in the event of misconduct is used to finance domestic climate protection measures, so as not to spend millions on pollution rights.
The environmental and climate spokesman for the ÖVP, Johannes Schmuckenschlager, emphasized that the climate protection measures are “a significant opportunity for the sustainable development of the economy and jobs in Austria”. For the goal of a climate-neutral Austria by 2040 and the achievement of the climate goals, a “technology offensive should be started and digitization and innovation accelerated”.
SPÖ and NEOS did not want to approve the request. SPÖ climate spokeswoman Julia Herr missed the consideration of employment measures and general plans for the implementation of the project. The request corresponds to the “announcement policy” practiced by the government. “The climate crisis doesn't care about press conferences,” she emphasized. Rather, the SPÖ will bring in four of its own applications. The NEOS also missed the concrete steps for implementation. Environment spokesman Michael Bernhard could imagine that his parliamentary group would still be able to agree in two weeks' time in the plenary session of the National Council, provided that negotiations are started and the proposal is improved accordingly.
