On Wednesday, ALDE Party in co-operation with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation Europe hosted a Liberal breakfast on the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the European Union. ALDE Party Vice-President Angelika Mlinar, MEP for the Austrian liberals of NEOS was the guest speaker and shared her views. The debate was moderated by Ingrid Steiner-Gashi of the Austrian newspaper Kurier.

The breakfast meeting happened at a topical moment, as Austria is halfway through its Presidency, and just months away from the European elections and Brexit.

The priorities stated by the Austrian government were security and the fight against illegal migration, stability in the European neighbourhood, and securing prosperity and competitiveness through digitalization. Whereas the latter has not received as much attention as the other priorities, the pressure to deliver on all areas is high. Commenting, Angelika Mlinar said: "Especially on the asylum package, this Presidency does not find compromises. Rather, it is on the side of those who block progress. It is obvious that this serves for electoral purposes and we fail to see initiatives at the European level."

https://twitter.com/AngelikaMlinar/status/1052451966713061377

She continued: "While this Presidency is a success from a technical point of view, with experienced officials, I fail to see real progress on future-oriented themes, such as digitalisations, robotisation and artificial intelligence."

https://twitter.com/AngelikaMlinar/status/1052454960410050560

Watch the breakfast on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=440349316489492