Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Hungary leaving crisis behind without austerity, official says in debate

Hungary leaving crisis behind without austerity, official says in debate

Hungary is leaving recent economic difficulties behind without austerity measures, a state secretary of the Prime Minister's Office said at a discussion with opposition Socialist MEP Istvan Ujhelyi at the Tranzit conference in Tihany, western Hungary, on Saturday.
Csaba Domotor said that while the previous leftist government’s reaction to the 2008 crisis had been based on austerity measures, and led the country into the “dead-end street of taking out an IMF loan”, the incumbent government considers crisis management to be a question of “who will make the final decisions on the future,” besides economic policy measures.

Ujhelyi said the handling of the 2008 crisis had laid the groundwork for the Orban government’s “growth trajectory” from 2010, which he said was mostly funded by European Union money. He also slammed the government for high inflation, fuel prices and the weak forint, while he said the minimum wage and health-care funding were below EU average.

Domotor said real wages had grown by 70 percent during the Fidesz government’s tenure over the past ten years. The government’s family support system and other benefits probably contributed to declining emigration numbers seen since 2015, he said.

He said while the government sees that Hungary has a vested interest in being a member of the EU, “this doesn’t mean that we can’t push Hungary’s interests through.” He also called on the opposition to refrain from “campaigning for the suspension of EU funding for Hungary for internal political purposes.”

Meanwhile, in another debate, Istvan Hollik, Fidesz’s communications director said that the Hungarian political left had “no political programme to present at all” and was driven by the simple goal to oust Fidesz and “put [former Socialist Prime Minister] Ferenc Gyurcsany who had robbed the country twice into power again”.

Hollik said that Gyurcsany has included Peter Marky-Zay, his opponent in Saturday’s debate who is mayor of Hodmezovasarhely, in the leftist election cooperation in the hope that he could “win back undecided voters”.

He said that Hungary “has moved closer to the EU” as has been reflected by figures while the opposite had taken place during the eight-year government of the previous Socialist government. “Hungary’s economy has performed 2-3 percent better annually than the EU average,” Hollik said.

Marky-Zay said in response that “the Fidesz government’s talk is now about Hungary moving closer to the EU while it is working with full steam to move Hungary farther away from the community, and is talking almost openly about a Huxit”.

“Hungary is today the second poorest country of the EU which was not the case ten years ago in terms of ranking by GDP”, he said. Marky-Zay said data showed that the number of Hungarians living beyond poverty line had increased, state debt had gone up, an increasing number of Hungarians had left the country and the country has a high rate of graft.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
×