It is now in effect. Since October, governments have been able to submit reforms and plans to the Commission, which will receive funding. The deadline runs until April 30. The Commission examines whether all requirements have been met. Because there are a few rules that apply: At least 37 percent of a country’s plans must be related to climate protection; An additional 20 per cent should be used to finance digitization projects; Social goals should also be taken into account.

So a country cannot submit any plans. Surprisingly, the Austrian government has done nothing yet. “The 19 member states have already submitted drafts of their plans or large parts of them,” a spokesman for the European Commission said in response to a profile request. There are eight stragglers – Austria in the group. What’s more, as the profile has learned from circles in Brussels, most of the latecomers have had preliminary discussions with the Commission or submitted unfinished drafts. Only three countries have done anything so far: in addition to small Luxembourg, these are of no importance, these will be Ireland and Austria.

Accordingly, pressure is mounting on the Turquoise-Green government. Criticism of the EU development plan comes from SPA politicians and trade unionists. Wolfgang Katsian, president of the Austrian Federation of Trade Unions (ÖGB), said last week that nothing had happened on Radio-1. Not only the Red Trade Unionists, but also the AVP party friends are even more upset. “As early as November 2020, federal states were asked to participate in the creation of this reform plan,” Hermann Shatsenhofer (AVP), styrofoam governor and current chairman of the governor’s conference, said in a profile request. According to the governor, Shatsenhofer and Edstaddler met earlier Friday to discuss the development plan. “It simply came to our notice then. It is important for countries to be partners in what these funds are used for.

Actors like the federal states and trade unions are throwing themselves into the EU development plan because they certainly have something to say in it. At least that’s what the EU Commission plans to do. The Commission has asked all member states to engage in extensive political discussions with community partners and other relevant stakeholders to prepare a development plan, ”a Commission spokesman told Profile. Partners: These may be federal states, municipalities, trade unions, youth organizations or civil society organizations such as environmental NGOs. In the submissions sent to Brussels, a report on the extent to which “inputs from partners are taken into account and how much this is reflected in the project” is required, as stated in the statement of the Commission to the European Union.