Launching the national consultation, the goal of the government is to reach “points of understanding” with society on issues which determine public discourse such as the damages awarded by courts due to poor prison conditions or the issue of the Gyöngyöspata damages, Örs Farkas stated on the Tuesday programme of the public service television news channel M1.

According to the explanation of the spokesperson for the Government Communication Centre, they expect the government to have to endure major international attacks on account of its planned decisions on these matters; however, the people’s opinions could serve as a confident point of reference for the government.

They are expecting attacks all the more because the problems and issues raised by the government are generated by organisations funded from abroad which abuse the opportunities afforded by the law, he added.

He said they believe that a trend has started in Europe which focuses more on the interests of criminals than on those of victims. It clearly shows the gravity of the situation, he continued, that so far 12,000 prison damages lawsuits have been instituted against the State, and the total amount of damages awarded has now reached HUF 8.5 billion.

By his account, this has the consequence that in many cases actors attached to foreign organisations have sided with criminals, not with victims. They are seeking opportunities which enable them to make large amounts of money for themselves on the one hand, and for criminals on the other, he said.

According to Mr Farkas, in the case of Gyöngyöspata, “an organisation which is admittedly financed from abroad” fuelled a conflict in connection with an issue that could have been resolved, thereby creating internal tensions in a settlement again.

The damages to the value of one hundred million forints payable by the local government could bankrupt the settlement, he pointed out. In this instance, providing education would be the reasonable solution. However, the organisations financed from abroad reject this, he added.

The spokesperson said among the questions of the national consultation they also wish to ask whether judges should be allowed to have interests of a business nature.

He also mentioned that, as expected, the consultation questionnaire will contain eight questions, and it will also be possible to complete it electronically.

Posting of the questionnaires will start in mid-March.