Today in Austria: A roundup of the latest news on Friday
Austria opposes EU gas price cap, unemployment drops while job vacancies rise, plus more news from Austria on Friday.
Austria opposes EU proposal for gas price cap
On Friday, energy ministers of the 27 EU member states are meeting in Brussels to discuss the ongoing energy prices, the daily Der Standard reported.
The talks are preliminary, and governments don't expect any decisions to be announced yet. The most controversial point is a proposal to cap the price of Russian gas when imported into Europe - buyers in the bloc would jointly agree to buy Russian gas only at a discount.
Several EU countries fear that such a measure would result in Moscow completely stopping gas supplies. "Austria cannot agree with this proposal from today's point of view", Climate Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) said.
She added that the security of supply is a top priority "and as painful as it is, we are still dependent on Russian gas".
READ ALSO: How could Austria’s new electricity price brake benefit you?
Austria sends condolences to the British royal family
“With the death of Queen Elizabeth II, a historic figure passes away and with her, a 70-year era comes to an end, in which she stood for stability through the decades until today”, Austria’s Chancellor Karl Nehammer said on Twitter.
Nehammer added that the flag on the Federal Chancellery would be lowered to half-mast “out of respect for her life’s work”.
Vienna’s Mayor Michael Ludwig remembered that in 1969 Queen Elizabeth was a guest in the Austrian capital with her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh.
He shared a photograph of her visit and added: “With her death, an era comes to an end”.
1969 war #QueenElizabeth mit ihrem Mann, dem Duke of Edinburgh, zu Gast in Wien. Sie besuchte damals den Marshallhof, der ein Vorbild des Sozialen Wohnbaus war. 69 Jahre war sie Königin des Vereinigten Königreichs und Nordirland. Mit ihrem Tod geht eine Ära geht zu Ende. /1 pic.twitter.com/8MYJmoLzXp
— Michael Ludwig (@BgmLudwig) September 8, 2022
Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen shared a video with his message "saluting the Queen, her life's work for the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth".
He also said that the Austrian flag would be lowered to half-mast at Vienna Hofburg palace as a sign of respect.
READ ALSO: ‘Era comes to an end’: Austria reacts to the death of Queen Elizabeth II
Unemployment falls in Austria
In the second quarter of 2022, according to Statistics Austria, a total of 4,438,900 persons aged 15 and over were employed, while 197,900 were unemployed. There were 206,300 job vacancies, another all-time high record.
Compared to the same quarter of the previous year, fewer people worked from home in the second quarter of 2022.
“The upswing on the domestic labour market continues and is not yet affected by the Ukraine war and its consequences for the global economy. Nevertheless, the labour market is facing great challenges: At 206,300, the number of job vacancies in the second quarter once again reached a record level, exceeding the number of job seekers for the first time", said Statistics Austria Director General Tobias Thomas.
"This is a clear signal of the increasing shortage of skilled workers and labour", he added.
READ ALSO: Will a 4-day week and free German lessons help Vienna’s transport network find staff?
More victims of 'fake cop' scam in Austria
Austrian police again warn the public about a 'fake cop' scamp, with people being conned out of several thousand euros.
According to the authorities, the suspects contact their victims by phone, saying they are from the police and then try different techniques to get money from the people.
This week, an 81-year-old from Salzburg was persuaded to make several transfers and a physical handover of cash totalling €36,000 by a person pretending to be a chief detective, the police said.
In Tyrol, several cases were recently reported. In some, the criminals claimed that a close relative (usually a son or daughter) of the victim was in custody after a traffic accident and demanded bail.
READ ALSO: Austrian police warn public about new ‘fake cops’ scam
Weather
Screenshot from ZAMG
At first, there will be some fog, especially in some areas by the Alps and near the Danube, but this will soon clear and the sun will shine at times, Austria's meteorologic institute ZAMG forecasts.
From the southwest, clouds will increase and gradually bring heavy rain showers. There will also be thunderstorms.
It will remain dry until the evening, partly in the east. The wind will be light to moderate from southeast to west. The daily high temperature is 18C to 25C.
If you have any questions about life in Austria, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected].
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Austria opposes EU proposal for gas price cap
On Friday, energy ministers of the 27 EU member states are meeting in Brussels to discuss the ongoing energy prices, the daily Der Standard reported.
The talks are preliminary, and governments don't expect any decisions to be announced yet. The most controversial point is a proposal to cap the price of Russian gas when imported into Europe - buyers in the bloc would jointly agree to buy Russian gas only at a discount.
Several EU countries fear that such a measure would result in Moscow completely stopping gas supplies. "Austria cannot agree with this proposal from today's point of view", Climate Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) said.
She added that the security of supply is a top priority "and as painful as it is, we are still dependent on Russian gas".
READ ALSO: How could Austria’s new electricity price brake benefit you?
Austria sends condolences to the British royal family
“With the death of Queen Elizabeth II, a historic figure passes away and with her, a 70-year era comes to an end, in which she stood for stability through the decades until today”, Austria’s Chancellor Karl Nehammer said on Twitter.
Nehammer added that the flag on the Federal Chancellery would be lowered to half-mast “out of respect for her life’s work”.
Vienna’s Mayor Michael Ludwig remembered that in 1969 Queen Elizabeth was a guest in the Austrian capital with her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh.
He shared a photograph of her visit and added: “With her death, an era comes to an end”.
1969 war #QueenElizabeth mit ihrem Mann, dem Duke of Edinburgh, zu Gast in Wien. Sie besuchte damals den Marshallhof, der ein Vorbild des Sozialen Wohnbaus war. 69 Jahre war sie Königin des Vereinigten Königreichs und Nordirland. Mit ihrem Tod geht eine Ära geht zu Ende. /1 pic.twitter.com/8MYJmoLzXp
— Michael Ludwig (@BgmLudwig) September 8, 2022
Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen shared a video with his message "saluting the Queen, her life's work for the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth".
He also said that the Austrian flag would be lowered to half-mast at Vienna Hofburg palace as a sign of respect.
READ ALSO: ‘Era comes to an end’: Austria reacts to the death of Queen Elizabeth II
Unemployment falls in Austria
In the second quarter of 2022, according to Statistics Austria, a total of 4,438,900 persons aged 15 and over were employed, while 197,900 were unemployed. There were 206,300 job vacancies, another all-time high record.
Compared to the same quarter of the previous year, fewer people worked from home in the second quarter of 2022.
“The upswing on the domestic labour market continues and is not yet affected by the Ukraine war and its consequences for the global economy. Nevertheless, the labour market is facing great challenges: At 206,300, the number of job vacancies in the second quarter once again reached a record level, exceeding the number of job seekers for the first time", said Statistics Austria Director General Tobias Thomas.
"This is a clear signal of the increasing shortage of skilled workers and labour", he added.
READ ALSO: Will a 4-day week and free German lessons help Vienna’s transport network find staff?
More victims of 'fake cop' scam in Austria
Austrian police again warn the public about a 'fake cop' scamp, with people being conned out of several thousand euros.
According to the authorities, the suspects contact their victims by phone, saying they are from the police and then try different techniques to get money from the people.
This week, an 81-year-old from Salzburg was persuaded to make several transfers and a physical handover of cash totalling €36,000 by a person pretending to be a chief detective, the police said.
In Tyrol, several cases were recently reported. In some, the criminals claimed that a close relative (usually a son or daughter) of the victim was in custody after a traffic accident and demanded bail.
READ ALSO: Austrian police warn public about new ‘fake cops’ scam
Weather
At first, there will be some fog, especially in some areas by the Alps and near the Danube, but this will soon clear and the sun will shine at times, Austria's meteorologic institute ZAMG forecasts.
From the southwest, clouds will increase and gradually bring heavy rain showers. There will also be thunderstorms.
It will remain dry until the evening, partly in the east. The wind will be light to moderate from southeast to west. The daily high temperature is 18C to 25C.
If you have any questions about life in Austria, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected].
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