| Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Regions and Tourism | |
| Native Name: | Bundesministerium für Landwirtschaft, Regionen und Tourismus |
| Type: | ministry |
| Formed: | 1867 |
| Jurisdiction: | Austria |
| Headquarters: | Stubenring 1 Vienna |
| Coordinates: | 48.2097°N 16.3831°W |
| Minister1 Name: | Elisabeth Köstinger |
In Austrian politics, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Regions and Tourism (German: Bundesministerium für Landwirtschaft, Regionen und Tourismus or BMLRT, although often called Nachhaltigkeitsministerium[1] [2])is the ministry in charge of agricultural policy, forestry, hunting, fishing, viticulture and wine law, postal and telecommunications services, mining, animal welfare, and the tourism industry.The Ministry was first created in 2000 through a merger of the Ministry of Agriculture (Landwirtschaftsministerium) and the Ministry of Environment (Umweltministerium); it gained responsibility for the energy sector, mining, and tourism under the first Kurz cabinet in 2018.[3] [4] [5] [6] [7]
The current Minister of Agriculture, Regions and Tourism is Elisabeth Köstinger.
The Ministry's earliest precursor was the Cisleithanian Ministry of Agriculture (Ackerbauministerium), created in 1867. In additional to agriculture, the Ministry was responsible for regulating hunting, fishing, and hydraulic engineering, excluding hydraulic engineering of military importance.[8] [9] The organization was renamed to Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (Ministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft) in 1918 and was briefly called a department (Staatsamt) rather than a ministry during the two periods of constitutional transition following the two World Wars. Except for the name, however, the Ministry survived mostly in its original form until 2000.
In 1972, Austria established the Ministry of Health and the Environment (Ministerium für Gesundheit und Umweltschutz, usually called Gesundheitsministerium or Umweltministerium for short). In 1987, family affairs were added to its portfolio, turning it into the Ministry of Environment, Youth and Family Affairs (Ministerium für Umwelt, Jugend und Familie) [8] [10]
In 2000, the two ministries were combined to form the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management (Ministerium für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Umwelt und Wasserwirtschaft, although often called Lebensministerium).[10] Responsibility for family affairs was moved to the Ministry of Social Affairs (Sozialministerium) at the time.
When the first Kurz cabinet took office in December 2017, the ministry was put in charge of the energy sector, mining, and tourism in addition to its existing powers and duties; it also gained its current designation.[9] [10] [11] The additional responsibilities created an institution with exceptionally broad authority; the new ministry has been described as a "super ministry" (Superministerium) [12] and a "behemoth" (Riese); the cabinet had difficulties finding a new name that would adequately reflect its extensive purview, the present minister has noted.[12] The move was not completely uncontroversial.[13]
After the Second Kurz government took office in January 2020, the ministry was renamed Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Regions and Tourism.[14]
As of January 2020, the Ministry is charged with regulating, supervising, or managing, respectively:[15]
Since January 2020, the ministry consists of the Minister and her personal staff (Kabinett), the office of the general secretary, a special coordination department, and five numbered regular departments (Sektionen):[16]
The Minister and her staff are political appointees; the general secretary and the section heads are career civil servants.