Austria's lower house of parliament on Thursday elected its first ever far-right speaker after his Freedom Party won last month's parliamentary election and many conservatives backed him over the objections of the left and the Jewish community.

Walter Rosenkranz has become the first member of the Freedom Party to be speaker, one of the country's highest-ranking positions.

A lawmaker from the far-right Freedom Party has been elected as the new speaker of Austria’s parliament, weeks after the party won a national election for the first time.

Walter Rosenkranz, from Austria's Freedom Party, becomes the first far-right speaker of the lower house, sparking debate due to his past affiliations. His election was supported by the conservatives but faced opposition from left-wing parties and the Jewish community over concerns about his political associations.

Austrian parliamentarians elected Walter Rosenkranz of the FPÖ to the second-highest position in government. The appointment comes after the Freedom Party won an unprecedented election victory in September.

Austrian lawmakers on Thursday elected for the first time a far-right politician as parliament president despite the Jewish community criticising the nominee for having paid "hommage to Nazi criminals".