Dispute in government

Proceedings over Austria’s climate plan dropped

From the left: Former European Minister Karoline Edtstadler and former Climate Protection Minister Leonore Gewessler(Bild: APA, Krone KREATIV)

The EU Commission has closed the infringement proceedings against Austria for its missing or incomplete climate plan. The federal government should have submitted a second draft of the climate plan in June 2024, but this was delayed by six months.

The reason for this was a dispute within the then coalition of the ÖVP and the Greens, which was publicly fought over by former Climate Protection Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) and former European Affairs Minister Karoline Edtstadler (ÖVP). Edtstadler withdrew a draft that Gewessler had submitted. This had not been agreed with the government, she said. Gewessler saw it differently.

In the final version, which was adopted by the Council of Ministers in December 2024, the "queries raised by the Commission were answered and technical changes and updates were made." The EU Commission has now announced that it officially closed the infringement proceedings on Wednesday.

Gewessler sees the decision as confirmation of her approach. "Last year, after long negotiations with the ÖVP, we presented a strong National Energy and Climate Plan (NEKP) that helps to reduce energy costs, secures jobs in Austria and meets the EU climate targets."

Here you can see a post from the Greens.

The new government must now implement the plan quickly. For example, households should be supported in replacing their heating systems, especially those on low incomes, and the billions in climate-damaging subsidies should be abolished. "Less pollution in the air and more money in the purse must be the goal," said Gewessler.