Has the Ibiza committee of inquiry proven the "presumed buyability" of the former government of the ÖVP and FPÖ?
The views on this diverge.
Now is the end of the committee - for the time being.
Vienna - In Austria the Ibiza committee of inquiry comes to an end.
However, the final survey of ex-Vice Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache planned for today is canceled.
The 52-year-old canceled due to illness.
This means that there may only be one internal session of the parliamentary body.
The committee investigated the suspicion that the coalition of the conservative ÖVP and right-wing FPÖ, which ruled from 2017 to 2019, was for sale.
The investigation was triggered by the Ibiza video published in 2017, which led to the breach of the alliance.
In the video, Strache appeared prone to corruption.
He denies the allegations.
Different balance sheet
The members of the committee have viewed hundreds of thousands of data and documents and interviewed more than 100 people for more than a year. The parties now draw completely different conclusions from the committee. While the opposition sees suspicions of inadmissible closeness between the government and corporations corroborated, the ÖVP locates an attempt by the opposition to “permanently scandalize” normal processes. One of the consequences of the committee was the resignation of the head of the state holding ÖBAG, Thomas Schmid. Chats secured on his cell phone had compromised him.
The committee has deepened the domestic political rifts in Austria through the sharp disputes. Most recently, Finance Minister Gernot Blümel (ÖVP) only delivered numerous files to the committee under pressure from the Federal President to the indignation of the opposition. He justified this - based on legal reports - among other things with data protection. Chancellor and ÖVP boss Sebastian Kurz may face charges on suspicion of false testimony before the committee. He is said to have downplayed his influence when appointing his confidante Schmid as ÖBAG boss. He denies the allegations.
The opposition wanted to extend the committee, but the governing parties ÖVP and the Greens refused. The final reports will be drawn up in the next few weeks. Later, all delivered files must be destroyed. In the event of a possible restart of the body, they would have to be requested again. A special session of the National Council on the late delivery of files is planned for the near future. The opposition demands the resignation of Finance Minister Blümel. dpa