Investments amounting to 675 billion forints are being postponed due to the poor budget situation, but the Minister of Finance Mihály Varga did not talk about which ones exactly at the Government Information on Thursday. This is the first such briefing since February 16. Eszter Vitályos, who replaced Fidesz’s mayoral candidate, Alexandra Szentkirályi, is appearing in front of the press for the first time as government spokesperson.
Among other things, Mihály Varga justified the bad situation of the Hungarian economy by saying that it is very dependent on exports, and now the economies of Hungary’s export partners are also is getting sick. As he said, a budget deficit of 4.5 percent is expected this year. He also spoke about the fact that the public budget deficit is so large because there were several major expenditures in the first quarter. Among them, he mentioned that the amount necessary for the purchase of the Ferihegy airport was secured, and HUF 1,900 billion was paid to pensioners in February together with the 13th monthly pensions.
At the same time, the finance minister also said that according to the government’s expectations, the Hungarian economy will grow by 2.5 percent this year, which could reach 4.1 percent next year.
Mihály Varga did not specify which major investments would be postponed and for how long, but in response to a question, he said that there will be some that will be postponed from 2025 or 2026.
Later, they asked why the government insists on buying the airport if the budget deficit is so large and HUF 675 billion in investment has to be postponed. The finance minister said that Márton Nagy should be asked about the airport, he is responsible for the budget. At the same time, he called the deal a strategic goal, which, according to him, does not increase the public finances “lack of results-oriented approach”.
Biden, Trump and next year’s budget
Prime Minister Gergely Gulyás announced that the cabinet will submit the 2025 budget bill to the parliament on November 5, after the US presidential election. He reiterated that, according to the government, there is no military solution to the war, that peace negotiations and a ceasefire are needed. Despite this, the government considered the effects of a long period of war on the Hungarian economy, which requires a fundamentally different economic policy than the period of peace.
The most important decision for the future will be made by the Americans on November 5. A completely different scenario will prevail in terms of war and peace if Donald Trump is the president of the United States than if the current administration remains, therefore we will submit the 2025 budget proposal after November 5, said Gergely Gulyás.
Previously, the next year’s budget was voted on in the summer, and now it was also the case that the draft budget for 2025 will be submitted to the parliament in April. Mihály Varga also called the result of the US presidential election decisive. As he said, the government and the budget must also respond to this and the possible escalation of the war in Ukraine. According to him, the autumn planning will help the cabinet in a technical sense.
In response to a question, the finance minister also spoke about EU subsidies, repeating the government’s narrative: it is money that benefits Hungary. He said that the European Commission started the transfers, since last December more than HUF 550 billion have arrived.
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Ukrainian products, a package of measures to protect the agricultural and food industry sectors
A five-point package of measures was announced at the Government Information, which was attended by Minister of Finance Mihály Varga and Minister of Agriculture István Nagy.
In order to help the agricultural and food sector, the government has decided to
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Audio recording by Péter Magyar
When asked whether Viktor Orbán, Antal Rogán or Gergely Gulyás were interviewed by the prosecutor’s office based on the audio recording made public by Péter Magyar, the minister in charge of the Prime Minister’s Office said that he did not, and that he did not know about the others. Former Minister of Justice Judit Varga was interviewed by the way.
Gergely Gulyás considers it unfounded and impossible that the prosecutor’s documents of the Völner-Schadl case were tampered with, so according to him, the journalist’s question whether Antal Rogán and Péter Polt can remain in their posts if it is proven that they tampered with the documents is meaningless.
Szabad Európa also wrote about the audio recording, which Péter Magyar secretly recorded, and on which his wife at the time, Judit Varga, talks about, among other things, that the Rogán Antales pulled out the parts of the Völner-Schadl case that were unpleasant for them. It is also said in the recording that Pál Völner, Judit Varga’s deputy at the time, was warned to stop because György Schadl was being watched, but he did not accept it.
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When asked whether Péter Magyar might have an audio recording on which he and Gergelly Gulyás talk about the Völner-Schadl case, Gulyás answered: Judit Varga had told her before that her husband had threatened her with an audio recording, but she could not say that it was does it really exist. Gergely Gulyás, who previously had a friendly relationship with Péter Magyar, said: he has nothing to do with what is happening in Péter Magyar’s case. According to him, what Judit Varga says in the recording, that Völner was warned half a year before his arrest, cannot be true.
