Austria's conservative chancellor Karl Nehammer broke off coalition talks with the Social Democrats to form the country's next government on Saturday, saying they couldn't find agreement on key issues.
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Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer says he will resign in the coming days after talks on forming a new government fail.
The People’s Party and the Social Democrats continued coalition talks after the liberal Neos party’s surprise withdrawal from talks Friday.
“We have tried everything up to this point. An agreement on key points is not possible, so it makes no sense for a positive future for Austria,” Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer from the conservative People’s Party was quoted as saying by Austrian broadcaster ORF.
Neos, alongside Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer's conservative Austrian People's Party (ÖVP) and the centre-left Social Democrats (SPÖ) had been trying to forge a three-party ruling coalition after right-wing Freedom Party won national elections in September.
Neos leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger said progress was impossible and that "fundamental reforms" had not been agreed upon. She informed the other party leaders that Neos members "won't continue" talks.
Talks had dragged on after all other parties refused to work with the leader of the Freedom Party (FPÖ), Herbert Kickl, who came first with 29.2% of the vote, forcing the ÖVP and the SPÖ to try and recruit a smaller party to bolster their majority.
A fresh election is now the next step. The right-wing FPÖ immediately welcomed such a possibility as opinion polls indicate their support has only grown since the election. In a survey commissioned by newspaper Der Standard, the FPÖ increased their support to 35% of the vote according to prospective voters in December.