FPÖ leader Kickl received the call to order on Thursday from Third National Council President Doris Bures, of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPÖ) during a heated National Council session on right-wing extremism.
The debate followed the publication earlier this year of a report by the Documentation Centre of Austrian Resistance (DÖW), which warned of a rise in far-right crimes across Austria and links between the FPÖ and extremist groups.
Parliamentary groups used Thursday’s session to discuss the threat posed by right-wing extremism to Austria’s democracy. The FPÖ, however, largely avoided the report’s findings and instead slammed the DÖW researchers behind it.
Kickl’s remarks drew criticism not only from the Social Democrats and Greens, but also from the conservative Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP), who warned that it was crossing a line.
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Why is the term remigration controversial?
Lukas Hammer, the Green Party’s spokesperson on right-wing extremism, referenced the use of the term by Austrian far-right activist Martin Sellner,and the Identitarian Movement.
The word "remigration" is understood to refer to the mass "return" or deportation of certain migrants – including people with a migration background – and can also in some circles refer to the deportation of "non-assimilated citizens".
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During the unveiling of the report in January that gathered data in 2024, DÖW Director Andreas Kranebitter warned that the Identitarian movement had helped bring the concept of remigration into mainstream political debate via the FPÖ.
Even if it is framed as voluntary return by politicians, Kranebitter described the idea as a "programme of violence".
In his parliament speech, Luka Hammer described remigration as "ethnic homogeneity through mass deportations", and underlined that these proposals could also affect people with Austrian passports, whose citizenship could be revoked.
Visibly shaken, former Green Party MP Alma Zadić, who was born in Bosnia, asked during her speech: "Does that mean people like me should also be deported?"
Zadić had commissioned the DÖW report while serving as Justice Minister, along with Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP).
ÖVP parliamentary group leader Ernst Gödl described remigration rhetoric as an "illegal battle cry", warning that it was crossing a line.
Kickl did not directly address the criticism during his speech, instead accusing other parties and reports researchers of "inciting, dividing, and authoritarian thinking".
Support for FPÖ increases
It comes as support for the populist party among the Austrian population continues to grow. The Freedom Party leads the latest polls with 36.9 percent of the vote, followed by the People's Party (ÖVP) with 20.1 percent and the Social Democrats with 18.6 percent.
The FPÖ won the last nationwide election in Austria in 2024 but could not form a coalition in the subsequent months. Austria is currently governed by a coalition between the ÖVP, the SPÖ and the liberal NEOS.
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