Lower Austria ÖVP unveils taskforce to speed up approvals

The Lower Austria branch of the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) has introduced a “Business Taskforce” to help companies resolve bureaucratic problems and speed up approval procedures, ORF reported on Monday. The initiative is intended to make public administration more efficient in the long term.

Companies will be able to contact the taskforce when they face difficulties with bureaucracy or official approvals, state governor and ÖVP Lower Austria leader Johanna Mikl-Leitner said at a party conference in St. Pölten. The team will focus on particularly complex procedures or cases of major economic importance.

Examples include permits for industrial facilities, company takeovers and problems involving the labour inspectorate. Mikl-Leitner said the inspectorate should act as an advisory authority rather than a punitive one.

The taskforce will be based in the Department of Plant and Facility Law, known as WST1, and is intended to act as an “approval turbo”. Delays are not always caused by legislation, Mikl-Leitner said, but can also result from missing documents or inefficient procedures. The team will bring all parties together to establish a timetable identifying what is missing, what is still needed and who must act and when.

The taskforce will also examine individual cases to develop general standards, with the process expected to continue until summer 2027. The aim is to turn as many procedures as possible into standardised processes and improve efficiency and speed. Mikl-Leitner said the initiative would not lower protection standards or bypass the law, but would create a faster route for handling procedures efficiently.

Mikl-Leitner said the federal government, rather than the state, controlled the biggest opportunities for reducing bureaucracy. She called for a cut in payroll-related labour costs to be brought forward to 2027, fewer excessive regulations and a reduction in overly detailed building standards.

The Lower Austria ÖVP also plans to expand its public service programme. It intends to increase regional support, information services and contact with residents through information events and consultation days. Party offices in every district should be available not only to party officials but also to members of the public, state party secretary Matthias Zauner said.