Austria's Kurz kicks off election campaign

The favorite chancellor candidate for the centre-right People's Party, Sebastian Kurz, kicked off the intensive campaigning phase in Vienna on Saturday ahead of parliament election on Oct. 15.

While Austria does not have a lack of ideas and programs, the conviction to implement them and bring about change is not present, Kurz told some 10,000 supporters at the capital's Wiener Stadthalle.

The 31-year-old foreign minister outlined a seven-point plan to indicate what his governance would look like, including policy-making capacity, putting brakes on debt, compulsory education, lowering taxes, controlled migration, protecting the social welfare system, and a clear allegiance to the European Union.

Sebastian Kurz (C) attends his election campaign rally in Vienna, capital of Austria, on Sept. 23, 2017. The chancellor candidate for the centre-right People's Party, Sebastian Kurz, kicked off the intensive campaigning phase in Vienna on Saturday ahead of parliament election on Oct. 15.

Kurz's plans would also mean the position of chancellor would have greater powers, more in line with how the role presently exists in neighbouring Germany.

The People's Party leads opinion polls at some 33 percent, while Chancellor Christian Kern's centre-left Social Democrat Party and right populist the Freedom Party have some 24 percent each, an opinion poll from the weekly magazine Profile showed Saturday.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)