Burgenland parliament to debate finances after audit warning

Burgenland’s parliament is holding a special session on state finances on Wednesday after a report by the Burgenland Court of Audit raised concerns, ORF reported. Governor Hans Peter Doskozil of the SPÖ is expected to attend for the first time since undergoing an operation on his larynx.

The audit office said the state had spent more than it received every year since 2020, resulting in a loss of nearly one billion euros. According to the report, spending was financed through loans and the sale of housing loans. The audit office said the state’s reserves had now been exhausted.

The ÖVP and FPÖ have criticised the level of debt and the state’s spending policy for years. The SPÖ has maintained that public money was not being wasted, arguing that it had been used to create assets including hospitals. The state has also said it had already begun reducing its debt.

The ÖVP plans to ask Doskozil several questions about the state’s finances during the special session. The opposition says he has not yet answered them.