Austria's ex-Chancellor charged with making false statements to Parliament

VIENNA: Former Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has been charged with making false statements to Parliament, prosecutors said.

The former Chancellor has been accused of giving false testimony before an investigative committee of the Austrian parliament, Xinhua news agency quoted a press release from the prosecutor's office for economic crimes and corruption as saying on Friday.

If found guilty the former People's Party leader could face up to three years in prison.

In response, Kurz denied the charges, calling them "groundless".

"The accusations are false and we look forward to the time when the truth finally comes to light and the accusations prove to be unfounded in court," he said in a tweet on Friday.

"We look forward to the truth finally coming to light and the accusations proving to be unfounded in court."

The false testimony allegations relate to answers Kurz gave during committee hearings in 2020 and 2021, where he downplayed his role in the appointment of the head of the state holding company, Obag, reports the BBC.

Evidence obtained from chat messages later suggested he was significantly more involved in the process than he had suggested.

He was first informed in 2021, while he was still in power, that he was suspected of providing false testimony.

Kurz denied the allegations at the time, accusing the committee of trying to "twist every word in your mouth".

He finally resigned in October 2021, after separate allegations surfaced that Finance Ministry funds were used to manipulate opinion polls in favour of his party (OVP) that were then published in a newspaper.

His trial will begin on October 18 and is expected to last three days, prosecutors said.

When Kurz became Chancellor at the age of 31 in 2017, he was one the world's youngest ever democratically elected heads of government.