Werner Kogler, the leader of the Greens, was the second guest at the ORF summer talks in Traunkirchen yesterday. Despite the occasional rumble of thunder, the talk, led by Martin Thür, took place outdoors. Kogler only warmed up late in the talk, when the topic of climate protection came up.
The trained economist was not comfortable with the initial topic of health policy. Kogler tried to refute the long waiting times for specialist appointments: “I can only say that the Ministry of Health is behind the expansion of the promised positions for statutory health insurance doctors.” The Greens have taken over the Ministry of Health as a torso. Without giving any specific figures, Kogler said: “Everyone who deals with this attests that the health system works well in international comparison.” Party colleague Health Minister Johannes Rauch is leading this process well. He accused the Medical Association – without being very specific – of some strange games.
In view of the prevented attacks at the Taylor Swift concert, the analysis of cell phone data was discussed in detail. He repeated the promise he had made earlier to send the current draft bill for review – see page 3. Kogler added that an open society must have a discourse on the prevention of danger and the intrusion into private life. Kogler was not quite on point when he spoke about the house rules in Austria, which must be observed, in connection with the terror suspects. The suspects are Austrian citizens. With regard to migrants, Kogler pointed to a change of opinion by the Greens: early language acquisition is important.
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Image: ORF/Zach-Kiesling
On the end of the last generation of climate stickers, Kogler said it was about winning majorities, not annoying majorities. Initially, he understood the concern, “but yes, I was very critical of the climate stickers.” It was only when renaturation and energy supply were mentioned that Kogler was in his element. When asked about the Greens’ solo efforts in government, he said: “We are a reliable partner for the population and that is where we showed our true colors.”
Regarding the Schilling case, Kogler said that the country had been able to follow the EU candidate’s learning process. He called his own formulations “mumbling and farting” unintelligent and said he had taken them back.
Kogler expressed the hope of being represented in the next government, but Kogler did not want to attach too much importance to the fact that the ÖVP had already practically ruled this out. During the ongoing government negotiations, ÖVP members had recently ruled this out. If the Greens do end up in opposition, Kogler could also imagine taking on the role of parliamentary group chairman.
