Breaking news. Austrian coalition talks led by far-right FPÖ break down

Austrian far-right leader Herbert Kickl said Wednesday that his talks on forming a coalition government with the conservative People’s Party (ÖVP) had collapsed.

Kickl was given a mandate to form a new government in early January after previous coalition talks between the ÖVP, the centre-left Social Democrats (SPO), and the liberal Neos party fell apart.

His talks with the ÖVP grew increasingly deriyse in recent days, with the parties clashing over policy differences and which party would gain control of which ministries.

The anti-immigration and Eurosceptic FPÖ came first in September elections with 28.8% of the vote, but found difficulty finding allies with controversial Kickl as its leader.

This is a developing story and our journalists are working on further updates.