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Will Austria really be able to vaccinate everyone who wants it by the end of June?

Earlier in 2021, Austria promised everyone who wanted a vaccine could get one by the start of July. With the deadline looming, will the goal be met?

A woman recieves a vaccine. Photo by STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP)
More people want to be vaccinated as the campaign progresses, federal states in Austria report. Photo by JOE KLAMAR / AFP))

At the beginning of April, Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP) assured that all Austrians willing to vaccinate could receive their first vaccination by the end of June. 

According to research from the Austrian Press Agency (APA), the only states in Austria where this promise will definitely be kept will be in Lower Austria and Salzburg. 

READ MORE: Can Austria stick to its every adult vaccinated in 100 days target?

Although more than five million vaccine doses have now been given in Austria, more than half of the population eligible to be vaccinated has not had a first jab. 

Kurz said in April he assumed only two thirds of Austrians aged over 16 (7.5 million people), would register to receive a vaccine, leaving him with the target of vaccinating five million people before the end of July. 

Currently around 3.6 million people have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. 

 

Die Impfung ist unser Ausweg aus der Pandemie & mit ihr kommen wir der Normalität Schritt für Schritt näher!

Posted by Sebastian Kurz on Thursday, April 8, 2021

Vaccine hesitancy has been decreasing in Austria according to APA research with federal states, meaning demand is still high as the rollout continues. 

Many second vaccination doses are due

In addition, the pace of first vaccinations is unlikely to significantly increase, as many second vaccinations are now due, the broadcaster ORF reports.

Last week, the pace of first vaccinations slowed to 35,000 per week, rather than 40,000 to 50,000 per week as seen earlier in May.

However, the number of vaccine dose deliveries should increase in June. In May, 500,000 vaccine doses per week were delivered to Austria, in June it should be up to 700,000 per week.

Lower Austria 

In Lower Austria, State Health Councillor Ulrike Königsberger-Ludwig told APA all people who have registered for the coronavirus vaccination will receive their first injection by the end of June. Since May 10th all age groups from 16 upwards have been able to register for a vaccine. 

Some children aged twelve could be vaccinated as early as June in Lower Austria, especially if they belong to a risk group, according to ORF

Salzburg

In Salzburg, all those who registered for a coronavirus vaccination by May 26th should have received the first jab by the end of June. Those who missed out on this deadline will be eligible from July, health officer LH-Deputy Christian Stoeckl told APA.

Since June 1st, all Salzburg residents aged twelve and over have been able to register for the vaccination, and vaccination of 12 to 20-year-olds is planned over the summer. 

Vienna

A spokesman for the Vienna City Councilor for Health Peter Hacker (SPÖ) told APA that he could not promise everyone who wanted to be vaccinated in Vienna would be able to, as new entries were constantly made in the city’s reservation platform. 

Vienna, which has the lowest vaccination rate of any federal state, plans to have vaccinated up to 60 percent of the population by the end of June. By mid-July – depending on the availability of the vaccine – 70 percent is expected and up to  80 percent in August, including children aged 12 and up.

Priority groups will continue to be vaccinated for the time being with no release of appointments for all groups planned. 

Upper Austria 

In Upper Austria, vaccinations have been open to everyone since May 29th, and there are no longer any priorities. It is currently possible to book a vaccination appointment until the week of July 19th-25th.

Health Councillor Christine Haberlander (ÖVP) said if Upper Austria were given more vaccines the state could administer up to 180,000 vaccinations per week.

Vorarlberg 

In Vorarlberg the vaccination prioritisation based on age, risk or occupational group was lifted three weeks ago. Vorarlberg says it will send all those who have registered on the platform an invitation for a vaccination appointment by the end of June.

Styria 

In Styria all people who registered with the vaccine portal before May 25th will receive an appointment before July 7th.

Any leftover doses will be given to people who have registered with the vaccine service since May 25th onwards. Appointments can only be given out once vaccines are in stock in sufficient quantities, according to the federal state. 

Burgenland

Burgenland’s Coronavirus coordination team say it will “probably not” work out that all those willing to vaccinate have received the first vaccination by the end of June as they do not think they will receive enough vaccine doses in time.

However, the team assumes everyone who is currently registered can be vaccinated by mid-July. Appointments will be given out shortly before the vaccines become available. 

Carinthia 

In Carinthia, new people are registering regularly on the vaccine portal and willingness to vaccinate is increasing to around 60 percent of the population, according to spokesman Gerd Kurath. 

He added that the waiting list is stuck at around 50,000 people due to these factors, with more wanting to be vaccinated than vaccines available.

Appointments will be planned from week to week according to age categories. In addition, many second vaccinations are now due so “unfortunately”  first vaccinations may have to wait, he said.

Tyrol 

Tyrol was unable to tell the APA  when all those willing to be vaccinated would receive their first dose. Plans in this federal state are made “from week to week”. Since Friday, May 28th, vaccination appointments will start for people in all age categories from 16 to 50-years-old. However, older people will still be prioritised. 

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AUSTRIAN CITIZENSHIP

Why is Vienna pushing hard for the easing of citizenship rules?

Authorities in the Austrian capital Vienna are campaigning hard for the federal government to change the bureaucratic process of naturalisation.

Why is Vienna pushing hard for the easing of citizenship rules?

The Vienna authorities and the city’s so-called Integration Council have recently strongly criticised the existing restrictive citizenship law, arguing that it creates a “democratic deficit” by excluding over one-third of Vienna’s resident population from the right to vote. In a press statement, they have called for reforms to address this issue.

While the citizenship law is under federal jurisdiction and cannot be changed by individual provinces, regional authorities can still exert pressure for reforms. Vienna has advocated for law changes for several years, especially as the city’s immigrant population continues to grow.

Naturalisation as an integration tool

The latest proposal from the Vienna Integration Council, led by Deputy Mayor Christoph Wiederkehr of the Neos party, suggested granting automatic citizenship to children born in Austria if one parent has legally resided in the country for five years.

According to the Integration Council, Vienna has experienced a significant decline in the naturalisation rate compared to other European countries, despite the population growth resulting from immigration. The current requirements for Austrian naturalisation include ten years of legal and uninterrupted residence, as well as proof of sufficient financial means and a secure livelihood.

READ ALSO: Reader question: Does Austria allow me to have multiple citizenships?

The Integration Council called for reducing the length of required residence, lowering income thresholds, and allowing dual citizenship. They also emphasised the need for increased resources for the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (MA 35) in Vienna to streamline and enhance the efficiency and transparency of the naturalisation process.

Additionally, the council highlighted the challenges the current citizenship law poses to the integration process. Gerd Valchars, a member of the Integration Council and a political scientist, said that naturalisation is vital in facilitating social integration, leading to higher incomes, lower unemployment rates, improved housing conditions, and better educational opportunities for children.

austria passport

Austria has strict rules on citizenship, but a powerful passport. (© Amanda Previdelli / The Local)

‘Democratic deficit’

It’s not the first time Vienna has mentioned an “increasing democratic deficit” in Austrian society. 

Already in its Integration Monitor 2020, the SPÖ-led administration said: “A democracy thrives on the participation of the largest possible number of people subject to the laws that are passed.

“But if people are not allowed to vote because of their citizenship or do not (any longer) make use of their right to vote (as it happens especially often with disadvantaged population groups1), this leads to the fact that their interests are no longer represented in parliament, state parliament, the municipal council or district council. This is a massive democratic deficit that has been growing in recent years due to increasing mobility and immigration.”

“The situation is exacerbated by the very restrictive naturalisation law in force in Austria, as described above. Not only does the representativeness and, thus, legitimacy of democracy suffer from this situation, but it also leads to an integration policy problem. This is because people who are not allowed to participate in decision-making may develop less interest in political processes and the development of the society in which they live”, it added.

BACKGROUND: What are Austria’s Social Democratic Party’s plans to ease citizenship rules?

The City has called for easing citizenship rules for almost 20 years, requesting that political participation rights be linked to residents after a certain stay.

In 2003, Stadt Wien introduced voting rights for third-country nationals at the district level, with prerequisites such as five years of legal residence and main residence in Vienna. However, this regulation was overturned by the Constitutional Court in 2004 because Austrian federal constitutional law only recognises a uniform right to vote at all levels of the federal state linked to Austrian citizenship.

READ ALSO: ANALYSIS: Could Austria ever change the rules to allow dual citizenship?

Who is prevented from voting in Vienna and Austria?

At the beginning of 2022, 31.5 percent of the population of voting age 16 and older were not allowed to vote in elections at the federal, provincial and municipal levels, according to Stadt Wien data.

According to the latest information, 14.18 percent of Viennese citizens of voting age are citizens of other EU member states and, therefore, eligible to vote at least at the district level.

However, 17.26 percent of Viennese citizens of voting age have the citizenship of a third country and are therefore not allowed to vote at any level.

In some districts, the proportions of people without voting rights are much higher. In Rudolfsheim-Fünfhaus, 42.4 percent of the population of voting age do not have the right to vote. In no other district is the proportion of Viennese who are allowed to participate in democratic processes lower. In contrast, in Hietzing, “only” 20.8 percent are excluded from democratic participation.

READ ALSO: Austrian presidential elections: Why 1.4 million people can’t vote

Young people with foreign citizenship are particularly affected by the exclusion from the right to vote: 41.4 percent of Viennese citizens between the ages of 16 and 44 do not have Austrian citizenship.

In Austria, the latest Statistik Austria data shows that 19 percent of all people residing in the country are not Austrian nationals – and, therefore, would not have the right to vote. The number has increased considerably since January 1st 2022, when 17.7 percent of the population had foreign citizenship. This considers people of all ages, and not only those of voting age (16 or above).

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