Austrian govt forms without far right months after vote

The country's politicians broke a record of 129 days to form a new government that dated back to 1962.

New People's Party leader Christian Stocker is expected to become chancellor.

The parties planned to present their program later on Thursday.

This was the second attempt by the three mainstream parties to form a new government without the far-right, anti-immigration and euro-sceptic Freedom Party, which in Austria's September 29 election emerged for the first time as the strongest political force.

Their first effort collapsed in early January, prompting the resignation of conservative then-chancellor Karl Nehammer - and setting the scene for Austria's president to ask Freedom Party leader Herbert Kickl to try to form a government.

Kickl's own attempt to put together a coalition with the People's Party, which finished second in the election, collapsed in mutual recriminations on February 12.

The mainstream parties, which faced the risk of a new election that was unlikely to do them any favours, resumed their effort to find common ground.