The referendum regarding the mandatory settlement quotas is not aimed against the EU, but is, in actual fact, a good example of how to consult with the electorate on an issue of great significance, János Lázár, the Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office said at the press conference Governmentinfo 56 which he held jointly with Government Spokesperson Zoltán Kovács.
Hungary is seeking to ensure that Britain, this strong western power, should remain our strategic ally, János Lázár, the Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office said at his usual Thursday press conference in Budapest.
The Minister informed the press: the Government will set up a task force for managing the consequences of Brexit. Hungary has a vested interest in maintaining economic and political cooperation with Britain. Measures will be taken to ensure that the long negotiating process should be successful in terms of Britain’s exit and the conditions for new cooperation, he stressed.
Hungarian Government respects British decision
Mr Lázár highlighted: protecting the rights and interests of the hundreds of thousands of Hungarian people working in Britain is an important aspect of both Hungarian-British and EU-British relations. He added: the Visegrád cooperation, too, must be reinforced, and these countries may therefore unite their efforts in the interest of Hungarian workers as well.
As he said, the Hungarian Government respects and acknowledges the decision of the British people, and does not agree with those who dispute the outcome of the referendum as British electors took part in the referendum and exercised their right to vote in large numbers.
He highlighted: the majority of electors decided in favour of Brexit on account of uncontrolled immigration, and if the EU fails to control the migration situation, fails to reinforce the protection of its borders, and chooses to give up the condition of sovereignty, based on which the individual countries are free to decide who may live in their territories, this will have serious consequences for the future of the EU. „Uncontrolled immigration is a gross mistake”, as is the policy of extending invitations and the giving up of Schengen, he stressed.
Brussels bureaucracy may be held responsible for Brexit
In answer to a question, Mr Lázár remarked: Hungary is interested in a better EU, and Brussels bureaucracy may be held responsible for Brexit. The way in which a bureaucratic structure is imposing itself on Europe is unacceptable, and national sovereignty should be reinforced instead.
He also said in answer to another question that the Government has not considered what would be more beneficial in the case of Scotland and Northern-Ireland. As he said, this, too, raises a great many questions. At the same time, he does not believe that those who voted for Brexit did not thoroughly consider the consequences of their votes. „I would caution everyone against the simplified, pro-European stance that the uninformed provincial population, the „country bumpkins” voted for Brexit, and by contrast, the enlightened urban citizenry knows what is right”, he said.
Mr Lázár further stated his personal position regarding the British referendum in response to an enquiry. As he said, he is increasingly convinced that he would not be able to vote for staying in wholeheartedly. This does not mean that he is not pro-European, but he does not agree with what Brussels is doing at present, he explained. He reiterated: at the time, he campaigned for Hungary’s accession, but today the EU’s institutional system does more harm to the Europe idea than good.
He also said: there will be no referendum on Hungary’s EU membership as there was already a valid referendum which favoured Hungary’s accession.
The Minister takes the view that the referendum regarding the mandatory settlement quotas is not aimed against the EU, but is, in actual fact, a good example of how to consult with the electorate on an issue of great significance. He said: the campaign will soon begin, and therefore the questions arise as to what purpose the referendum serves and how it relates to the European ideal. If we do not acquaint ourselves with the opinion of the Hungarian people on immigration, we are unable to authentically stand for the principle that it is a country’s fundamental right to decide who may stay in its territory, he explained.
Mr Lázár believes that the issue of immigration also contributed to the decision on Britain’s exit, and if the countries are not free to decide whether they want immigration or not, that may shatter the framework of the EU.
Five-party consultation to be held regarding Canadian free trade agreement
The Minister further informed the press: a five-party consultation will be convened for the beginning of next week regarding the issue of the free trade agreement between the EU and Canada. He said: it is a surprising turn of events that Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission would only tie the agreement to the approval of the relevant European forums, while the Hungarian Parliament passed a resolution to the effect that it also wishes to decide on the agreement on a national level. He added: he expects the parliamentary parties to confirm this position.
At the same time, the Minister sharply criticised György Soros who, by entering the stage directly, wishes to implement immigration „on an industrial scale” with anti-Hungarian proposals and the withdrawal of EU grants. In his view, based on the American businessman’s proposals, Hungarian electors should pay a tax which would be used for the maintenance of immigrants, and EUR 30 billion should be spent on the current problems of migration in Europe.
He described these proposals as ideas that are hard to construe in the absence of democratic legitimacy. „The question is who asked him to solve Europe’s problems”, he said, adding: those who had previously called into question that György Soros had anything to do with the shaping of international positions related to immigration may now rest assured that they were wrong. What is unclear is, however, he continued, as to why he is not campaigning for immigration in the United States and why he does not make his recommendations to East Coast electors.
Mr Lázár was also asked as to why Flórián Farkas, the Prime Minister’s Commissioner did not appear at the hearing of OLAF, the EU’s anti-fraud agency. Mr Lázár said in reply that he does not know the reason, and he will ask him to attend the hearing under any circumstances.
Government has closed issue of Liget project
The Minister also said that, after more than three years of social debates and consultations, the Government regards the issue of the Liget project as closed. He pointed out: they have considered all the arguments for and against the project, the construction works will begin, and the project will be completed by 2018-2019.
As he said, it is unclear who is protesting against what as the percentage of green areas will increase compared with the current rate. He remarked: there may be political machinations involved. However, everyone must observe the laws. The construction area will be fenced off in accordance with the labour protection and construction protection regulations, but there are no obstacles to protests outside the fence, he added.
The Minister further told the press that the passages in the amendment of the laws related to compensation which the head of state found objectionable have already been corrected, and the revised amendment will be re-submitted to Parliament. He also said that the Government is not planning any further rounds of land auctions after the third round. As a result, the referendum initiative launched by the socialists is no longer relevant.
Mr Lázár was also asked about the fate of the Southern Railway Station. In this context, he pointed out repeatedly that they will not decide on the matter in the absence of metropolitan mayor István Tarlós. In response to the remark that the mayor authorised his deputy, Gábor Bagdy to represent him, he aid: they want to hear what the mayor has to say because when he is not present at the cabinet meeting, „his absence pervades like a current of cool air”. He also confirmed that the Government has adopted a decision on the issue of the metropolitan bus replacement service, and Budapest will receive the necessary funds.
The Minister further reported that, despite the Government’s best intentions, the bicycle path construction programme is not doing well. While one thousand kilometres of bicycle paths have been built in recent periods, primarily, next to main transport routes and in residential areas, these are mostly not used for tourism purposes, and we would now need bicycle paths which are suitable for those purposes.
He mentioned that the Government will also decide on the issue of road developments. This will not be easy as there is a road development programme worth HUF 2,100 billion on the Government’s table, and there is a shortage of funds. They will decide on the projects item by item so that the programme can be completed by 2022. They will set up a preference list, and will decide on when and how the developments should be implemented, he explained.
Mr Lázár remarked: municipal workers have every right to complain that they have been left out of the pay rises, and the Government is therefore ready to talk to municipal leaders and trade unions as to how to resolve this issue.
In answer to a question, he confirmed that all government holiday homes will be sold according to plans.
The Minister was further asked about the fact that the National Trade Union of Chimney Sweeps urges mandatory annual checks, and they would consult him on the matter. He said in reply that this is a disaster management issue that has to be taken care of by the competent authorities. Politics cannot remove the responsibility involved from the disaster management authorities by determining the frequency of checks. At the same time, he will listen to what they have to say.
László L. Simon to conclude his activities
The Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office is not satisfied with the work of the state secretary responsible for the protection of cultural heritage and priority cultural projects, and László L. Simon will therefore conclude his activities. The Minister will decide on his successor.
The Minister was of the opinion that the delegation of a number of areas and responsibilities to the Prime Minister’s Office was fundamentally a good decision.
He also mentioned that Mrs Németh, Lászlóné, the state secretary responsible for financial services and postal matters at the Prime Minister’s Office will retire soon, and on account of her departure, there may be organisational and personnel changes in the near future. The integration of savings cooperatives will stand the test of time and political disputes, he said.
In answer to a question, Mr Lázár said: there is an ongoing investigation at the Hungarian Postal Service due to fraud in three cases. At the same time, both he and Mrs Németh, Lászlóné take full responsibility in every one of the cases. He is asking Interior Minister Sándor Pintér to institute the relevant proceedings if there are any further reports, including anonymous ones, regarding the Hungarian Postal Service and the integration of savings cooperatives, and to conduct all the necessary investigations. As he said, „we take full responsibility for everything”.
In answer to a question concerning a statement made by Sándor Szakály in which the Director General of the Veritas Research Institute recently said about the numerus clausus legislation that it did not constitute disenfranchisement, but legal restrictions, Mr Lázár said: what Sándor Szakály said does not tally with the historical evaluation which now stands as a consensus among historians in Hungary. This is Mr Szakály’s personal opinion, and it would be wrong for the Government to take a stance on the matter. There are therefore no plans regarding his removal, he said. He took the view that it is not the Government’s duty to decide whether a historian’s statement is correct or incorrect, and the historian community will have to debate the matter. The Government has no decision-making power on matters related to historiography, and it would be indeed a big problem if the Government decided on issues of this nature. Mr Lázár is fully satisfied with the work of Director General Sándor Szakály.