Papp László, the mayor of Debrecen from the ruling Fidesz party, has responded critically to remarks made by government spokesperson Éva Vitályos during a recent government briefing.

Vitályos suggested that local governments should address their own issues internally before appealing to the state for support.

Papp characterized Vitályos's comments as offensive, indicating that such statements reflect a significant misunderstanding of the circumstances facing local governance, which he finds particularly troubling for a government spokesperson.

In his statement to local news outlet Dehir, Papp emphasized that he has repeatedly highlighted the disproportionate nature of how the solidarity contribution is calculated, noting that it does not align with the financial realities of local governments.

He pointed out that municipalities like Debrecen often undertake responsibilities that are not typically part of their mandates alongside the national government.

The city of Debrecen is facing an increase in its solidarity contribution to the state, with payments rising from eight billion forints last year to ten billion forints this year.

This increase coincides with the launch of the Competitive Districts Program, which requires Debrecen to contribute an additional 4.5 billion forints from its own business tax revenues.

Papp stated, "We are indeed taking care of our own issues to a significant extent.

However, it is far more important for the government to reconsider the proposal put forth by the Association of County Towns regarding the recalibration of the solidarity contribution's calculation and amount, which has been jointly submitted to the government." He wished the spokesperson success in studying their proposal.

In a related political development, András Cser-Palkovics, the mayor of Székesfehérvár, has publicly called for an apology from Vitályos, expressing hopes that her comments were merely the result of poor phrasing.

In another context, Fidesz representative Zoltán Kovács announced his departure from parliament after twenty-seven years of service, following his election as a member of the Supervisory Board of the Hungarian National Bank.

He will be succeeded by Gábor Kiss in the Veszprém electoral district.

Kovács expressed his readiness to undertake this new role after a long tenure in parliamentary service.

The election of new members to various commissions was highlighted, including the appointment of Szilárd Sasvári to the board of the Public Service Foundation and the continuation of changes within governmental oversight positions.

Additionally, Alexandra Szentkirályi, the Fidesz-KDNP faction leader in Budapest, criticized the mayor of Budapest, Gergely Karácsony, for initiating a public transport halt.

Szentkirályi labeled Karácsony’s actions as detrimental to the capital and accused him of avoiding responsibility for financial mismanagement in the city, claiming that his actions amount to a severe political failure.