Context of Austria's Peer Review

Austria is a prosperous and democratic country with a population of 8.5 million. It is a federal, parliamentary, democratic republic with nine states. The grand coalition government comprising the centre-left Social Democratic Party and the centre-right Austrian People’s Party was renewed in December 2013 following the September general election to the National Council (Naionalrat). The two parties have a combined 99 seats in the 183-member National Council, providing a sense of political continuity and stability and keeping Austria firmly on a pro- European Union (EU) course. The next general election is scheduled to take place in 2018.