The Austrian National Council, the lower house of parliament, has voted to lift the parliamentary immunity of Herbert Kickl, the leader of the far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), thereby permitting a perjury investigation to proceed. This move follows a request from the Economic and Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (WKStA), which seeks to prosecute Kickl for allegedly providing false statements during a parliamentary committee’s investigation into the mishandling of public funds.
The decision to lift immunity was contested by the FPÖ representative, Christian Ragger, who contends that the parliament’s actions are politically driven. Ragger argues that Kickl, while addressing the committee, was acting in the capacity of a parliament member, thereby warranting immunity protection. This argument, however, was countered by Christoph Zarits of the Parliament’s Immunity Committee, who clarified that the committee’s inquiries concerned Kickl’s earlier role as Minister of Interior, and not his position as a member of parliament, thus nullifying the immunity claim.
In tandem with proceedings against Kickl, the National Council has also lifted the immunity of three other FPÖ members. The trio is under investigation for alleged breaches of the Nazi Prohibition Law, which prohibits the public endorsement or display of Nazi symbols and ideology. These legal provisions are enshrined in both the Prohibition Act and the Badge Act.
The allegations against Kickl focus on claims that he misrepresented his lack of involvement with media advertisements financed by public funds during 2017-2019 when he was serving as Interior Minister. Although Kickl denied any such involvement, newly unveiled smartphone communications indicate detailed discussions regarding media strategies involving FPÖ officials, including Kickl himself. These exchanges have fueled the WKStA’s charges of false testimony against him.
This development is reminiscent of the legal issues faced by former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, who was sentenced to an eight-month suspended sentence for perjury. The political climate has further intensified as Kickl’s party, despite winning the September 2024 Austrian parliamentary elections, failed to form a majority government due to other parties’ reluctance to cooperate with the FPÖ.
These proceedings and the decisions surrounding parliamentary immunity are defined under Article 57(3) of Austria’s Federal Constitutional Law, which limits prosecution without parliamentary consent to actions clearly unrelated to the political activities of National Council members.
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