In his Friday morning interview with public broadcaster Kossuth Rádió, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced the imminent discussion of the draft budget. The issue of the Fidesz proposal aimed at compensating victims of the “Quaestor affair” was also raised; Mr. Orbán stressed that the Government will only support this initiative if the solution is also acceptable to the actors in the financial sector.
Talking about next year’s budget, the Prime Minister said that he expects it to be finalised by the end of the spring session of Parliament. He explained that next year tax relief for families with two children will be increased, the banking tax for financial institutions that have increased their lending activities will likely be reduced, and the rate of advertising tax may also be reduced – although he said that he sees a 5.3 per cent rate as insufficiently high. He added, however, that “received wisdom indicates that this will still be the highest such tax rate in Europe”. Regarding the advertising tax, the Prime Minister confirmed that “some sort of zero-rate band with a threshold will be necessary”. The reduction of corporate tax to a flat rate of 10 per cent in 2016 is not very likely, he said.
Among the significant changes, Mr. Orbán mentioned that – according to estimates – approximately 90 per cent of children in crèches and kindergartens will receive three free meals a day from September onwards.
Concerning the restructuring of the vocational training system, he noted that “the Hungarian school education system may change in a number of important fields in the future”. According to the Prime Minister, if the quality of education changes, if the new approach starts working, and if everyone feels that they should change their work ethic a little, “the spirit of change” might become apparent within three to four years.
The compensation proposal must be discussed with the banks
Another topic of the interview was the Fidesz proposal on the compensation for the victims of the “Quaestor affair”. Regarding this, the Prime Minister said that the Minister for National Economy will hold immediate discussions with the Banking Association and the Cabinet’s contractual partners. He explained that this proposal would require payments from the actors in the financial sector, but the Government has concluded an agreement with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), according to which no further taxes or contributions can be introduced in the banking sector, without first consulting the EBRD and the Banking Association. Therefore, the Prime Minister said, “We can only accept the leader of the Fidesz parliamentary group’s proposal if actors in the financial sector approve of it. I think this is a solution that could be realised”. He stressed that Mr. Rogán’s proposal would resolve the cases of over 31,000 people, leaving only 73 cases unresolved.
Concerning public money previously “parked” at brokerage firms, Mr. Orbán said that investigations are on-going; he added that the legislation for background institutions is not as strict as that for budgetary organs, which are prohibited from depositing public money at brokerage firms. “Currently we are trying to identify cases according to the level of negligence involved”, he said.
The Prime Minister also mentioned the loan of HUF 17 bn. made to Quaestor by the Hungarian Development Bank during the socialist government’s period in office. He said that investigative procedures must be launched as soon as possible, and “perhaps reports have already been filed with the authorities”.
Hungarian children in Transcarpathia must be provided with aid
Mr. Orbán said that Hungarian children living in Transcarpathia must be helped; therefore the Government will provide funds through civil organisations for their nutrition, for their teachers’ more secure livelihood and for community organising. Hungarians in Transcarpathia are equal members of the united Hungarian nation, he stressed.
“If we win, we shall continue the success story”
If the Fidesz-KDNP candidate wins the parliamentary by-election in Tapolca, “we shall continue the success story”, Mr. Orbán announced. Talking about his Thursday visit to the electoral district, he said that he has asked local people to vote for a candidate on Sunday whom they believe capable of continuing the policy that has made the constituency successful.
He stressed that the Tapolca electoral district is showing very positive results, and pointed out that Ajka has an unemployment rate of around 3 per cent, that Sümeg has significant development plans, that the “Cave Lake” and centre of Tapolca have been renovated, and that “we have just sent there” healthcare development funding worth HUF 2.3 bn.
Regarding the hospital in Tapolca, the Prime Minister said that “the question is not only if there is enough money for developments in a hospital, but also which structure the hospital’s development follows”. As an example he mentioned the need to reintroduce so-called “active hospital beds” in Tapolca.
Answering a question on whether he reads the news on national opinion polls, he said that he does not have to do so, as the governing party has its own polls.
The Prime Minister was also asked if the Fidesz voter-base has lost support. He said that this is a popular question, but is not at all significant. “The Government has a programme, for which it has gained the trust of people, and which it must complete. Whatever the popularity indices between two elections are, the Government has only one option: to do what it has undertaken to do; it must not deviate from that, even if there are conflicts along the way”, he said, adding that “data and opinions may come, the wind may blow from the front or the back, from the side, from the left or the right, but the work must be done”.