Austria's far-right FPÖ floods health ministry with 263 identical COVID-19 queries

A political dispute has erupted over the handling of parliamentary queries in Austria. The far-right FPÖ party stands accused of overwhelming the health ministry with excessive requests, costing taxpayers millions. Meanwhile, the ministry insists it remains committed to transparency despite the growing workload. In early May 2025, the FPÖ submitted 263 identical queries about COVID-19 regulations. Each contained around 18 questions, broken down into over 60 sub-questions. The ministry later revealed that answering these alone would tie up staff for weeks.

Since the start of the legislative term, the ministry has processed 894 parliamentary responses. A striking 86 percent of these came from the FPÖ. Officials estimate that handling the party's queries from March 2025 to March 2026 will cost over €2 million.

The ministry also clarified that only 3.2% of hospital visits and 4.1% of doctor visits involved individuals from the countries named in the FPÖ's latest query. In response to repeated misrepresentations, it began sending proactive 'fact checks' to media outlets.

Health Minister Korinna Schumann (SPÖ) condemned the FPÖ's tactics, calling them a deliberate burden on public resources. The Austrian Trade Union Federation (ÖGB) echoed her concerns, accusing certain political forces of distorting facts. The FPÖ, however, dismissed the ministry's statements as an 'admission of failure' and claimed the government was undermining parliamentary rights. The ministry continues to answer all inquiries 'to the best of its knowledge and belief'. Yet the financial and administrative strain remains significant. With no sign of the FPÖ reducing its volume of requests, the dispute is likely to persist.