Othmar Karas - MEP, Head of Austrian delegation in European People's Party (Kick-off speech in video intervention)
Elisabeth Ottawa - Head of EU Affairs, Raiffeisen Zentralbank Österreich AG
Ines Elise Prainsack-Ward - Head of Policy and Strategy Unit, European People's Party
Juliane Schmidt - Junior Policy Analyst, European Policy Centre (EPC)

Time and date: 19:00 - 21:00, 19 October 2016
Location: KBC Brussels establishment, Grand-Place, 17, 1000 Bruxelles

Our debate will be followed by a networking session in a convivial atmosphere

Register here: goo.gl/ff1DJl​
 

Centre for European Progression (CFEP) debate series

We are most pleased to invite you to participate in an evening discussion at KBC Brussels establishment, a beautiful and stunning neoclassical construction, situated at the most memorable landmark in Brussels, the Grand Place, on the issue of youth and populism in light of the Austrian presidential election. We will examine and analyze the reasons why the far-right has done so well in Austria, in particular during a period that the country enjoys one of the highest per capita income levels in the EU and an extensive welfare system.

Austria demonstrates the real perils of far-right and anti-EU movements across the continent, but also some hopeful possibility of new and fresh political forces to counter them.

Centre for European Progression firmly believes that EU can still survive populism through solidarity and strategic actions to counter the far-right and populist demagoguery and restore trust in the European Union. The aim of the conference is to provide the audience a “food for thought” as well as some insights about the reasons young people vote far-right and analyze the root causes for populism and euroscepticism through the special situation in Austria (economic grievances vs. a profound distrust of political elites and discontent with the political system).

A win of Freedom Party (FPÖ) would be a symbolic moment for the potential power of Europe’s populist parties, showing that they are not parties on the fringe of politics. As the Austrian case makes clear, mainstream parties seeking to confront the rise of populist politicians can end up further strengthening them. 

After all, can we expect the first far-right head of state in Europe? Is democracy really in danger?