By Francois Murphy
VIENNA (Reuters) -Austria’s centrist coalition government, the first three-party alliance since the aftermath of World War Two, took office on Monday, ending Austria’s longest-ever wait for a new government and keeping the far-right Freedom Party (FPO) in opposition.
Although the FPO won September’s parliamentary election with about 29% of the vote, it failed to form a coalition government.
When the FPO last month gave up trying to agree a government, the conservative People’s Party (OVP), Social Democrats (SPO) and liberal Neos revived a bid to form an alliance after abandoning an earlier effort in January.
Had their latest effort failed, there would have been few alternatives to a snap election, which polls suggested would have increased the eurosceptic, Russia-friendly FPO’s share of the vote.
“I wish you in the fulfillment of your duties all the best, much success, and also the necessary bit of luck, and I look forward to working well together,” President Alexander Van der Bellen said as he swore in the new cabinet, starting with OVP leader Christian Stocker, who becomes chancellor.
The OVP will head the interior and defence ministries while the Social Democrats will control finance and justice, with the liberal Neos running foreign affairs.
Although the three parties have agreed a 200-page government programme, they will have to hammer out many more policies as they go along, potentially causing tensions in their alliance.
“Will it be easy? No. Are the negotiations over? No,” Neos leader Beate Meinl-Resinger told a party meeting on Sunday, pledging “five years of tough negotiation” with the other parties.
The FPO will pressure them all along, and it started on Monday.
“The only thing that unites this loser, traffic-light coalition is thirst for power,” the FPO said on X, referring to the three-way coalition in neighbouring Germany that recently collapsed.
(Reporting by Francois MurphyEditing by Dave Graham)
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