Austria as a business location: three turquoise ministers develop growth strategies for the time after the pandemic
Minister Schramböck, Blümel, Kocher (from left)
At the moment Corona still dominates everything and if it weren't for the exporting industry, which continues to run at full speed despite lockdowns, the economic data would remain catastrophic in the second year of the pandemic. In any case, they are still in the labor market, in consumption and in investment.
Chancellor Sebastian Kurz also knows that it will probably be about fighting the crisis for longer. Nevertheless, he commissioned Finance Minister Gernot Blümel, Site Minister Margarete Schramböck and Labor Minister Martin Kocher to develop strategies for the hoped-for upswing after the pandemic.
On Tuesday, the “reconstruction trio”, as it is called internally in the government, performed for the first time. Schramböck said that a “comprehensive location strategy”, a “vision for Austria 2040” should be developed. The aim is to place Austria among the ten best economies in the world.
Since 2012 Austria has lagged behind Germany, Switzerland, Sweden and Denmark in terms of growth, the minister admitted. “We have to develop recipes to get better. Resignation is definitely the wrong way to go. We have to bring the MS Austria back into the water, ”said Schramböck.
The three turquoise ministers see greater growth potential in the areas of technology & digitization, in the health sector and in the cross-cutting issue of sustainability.
Interlink ministries
Blümel agreed that for this project the economy, work and finance must be more closely linked. To tackle more complex issues in areas such as state aid or competition law, as a spokesman explained. Accompanying summit talks or conferences with banks, exporters, social partners, etc. are being considered, but it is still too early for a more precise timetable.
WIFO has a new economic barometer. It is intended to provide the ministers with data that shows which sectors may be doing better and where further government aid is needed. So far, 31 billion has been paid out or promised.
At the moment there is still a lot of music in the future. This became clear from the statements made by Labor Minister Kocher. 458,993 people are currently on short-time work (plus 18,600 compared to the previous week). In addition, 534,256 people are registered as unemployed with the AMS or are in training (plus 744 people compared to the previous week).
And because the Corona crisis is anything but over, the short-time working budget is also increasing from five to seven billion. Kocher said: “Short-time work is a very expensive instrument. But it helps. So far, a million people have been kept in the job. “
