Austrian draft to index allowances incompatible with EU law

European citizens who pay the same levies as Austrians should be given the same child allowances, Deputy Foreign and European Affairs Minister Ivan Korčok and his Hungarian colleague Péter Szijjártó agreed on Tuesday. "If our citizens work legally in Austria and pay levies there, then we see no reason for indexing the income that belongs to them as with any other Austrian citizen," said Korčok. The new Austrian Government, composed of the Austrian People's Party (OVP) and the Freedom Party (FPO), wants to reduce allowances for children living abroad to match the cost of living in other countries. However, this wasn't adopted because of doubts concerning its compatibility with EU legislation. The Hungarian minister added that when the UK wanted to implement a similar measure, the European Commission stepped in. Korčok and Szijjártó therefore expect it will do so also this time.