Incident at a Party Meeting

NEOS expels party rebel Veit Dengler

NEOS Representative Veit Dengler was expelled from the party and the parliamentary caucus. He had previously called on the National Council to vote against a portion of the dual budget pertaining to party funding.(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

After his call in Parliament to vote against part of the double budget, the NEOS expelled their representative Veit Dengler from the party and the caucus. However, party sources stated that Dengler’s appearance in the National Council was not the reason for his expulsion. Rather, a controversial “incident” occurred during the subsequent caucus meeting. As the “Krone” learned, Dengler is said to have made audio and video recordings of the meeting. 

Officials did not wish to disclose any further details; however, as the “Krone” was able to ascertain shortly after the NEOS press release, Dengler was not expelled because of the substance of his position. It was reported that the prevailing view within the NEOS is that party funding is too high. According to “Krone” sources, Dengler secretly made audio and video recordings of the subsequent caucus meeting. He could now even face legal consequences, as this is reportedly not the first time Dengler has illegally recorded confidential caucus meetings.

On Friday at 11:48 a.m., Veit Dengler had still taken the floor in the National Council. The co-founder of NEOS had asked to speak on the budget chapter “Mobility, Innovation, and Technology”—but then chose instead to talk about something entirely different: party financing. Much to the displeasure of many lawmakers from his own coalition and to the astonishment of the others. Party financing is “so exorbitantly high that it can no longer be justified,” Dengler said.

Dengler spoke of a “party cartel”
All told, the figure amounts to 340 million euros per year—five times the EU average per eligible voter. He spoke of a “party cartel.” Dengler moved for a separate vote on the budget and called on his colleagues to reject one section of the budget proposal—that of the Federal Chancellery. For the federal finance laws as a whole, this was merely symbolic. In the decisive third reading, the resolution passed without difficulty thanks to the coalition’s majority.

His actions nevertheless had consequences. As the NEOS announced in a press release on Thursday evening, Dengler had “already violated the caucus bylaws on multiple occasions in the past”: “The general assembly of the NEOS parliamentary caucus unanimously decided today to expel Representative Veit Dengler from the caucus.”

“Nothing to Do with Policy Positions”
Regarding the reasons, the official statement read: “An incident—which explicitly had nothing to do with policy positions—during a confidential meeting this evening ultimately and permanently destroyed the trust of his fellow club members. Further cooperation is not possible under these circumstances. Further legal steps are also being considered.” Subsequently, Dengler was also expelled from the party.

Co-founded NEOS with Strolz
The former CEO of the NZZ Media Group had co-founded NEOS with Matthias Strolz in 2012 and served as deputy chairman until October 2013. After his tenure at NZZ, he was a member of the executive board of the German Bauer Media Group. Born in Graz, he had served as a member of the National Council since October 24, 2024.