Monthly newsletter Hungary – July 2022
New (old) names for government representatives and counties
Since January 1, 2011, government offices in the capital and counties in Hungary have been headed by government commissioners (kormánybiztos) appointed by the Prime Minister. A legislative proposal from Finance Minister Mihály Varga from mid-June now provides for the reintroduction of the historical term “Oberspan” (főispán) instead of the currently used form “government representative”. In this way, today's administration should be linked more closely to the terminology of Hungarian state administration before communism and the constitutional traditions of the thousand-year-old Hungarian statehood should be preserved. There are also many examples in European countries of the modern use of terms that go back to earlier times, said Varga. As an example, he cited the Anglo-Saxon countries, where in many places the term “alderman” is still used today for the elected heads of local governments 2. The office of Obergespan existed for centuries until its abolition in 1950.
At the same time, Fidesz parliamentary group leader Máté Kocsis introduced an initiative to amend Article 11 of the Basic Law, which would have the aim of renaming the counties (megye) to what were previously called “castle counties” (vármegye). The use of the word “vármegye” was abolished by the communist regime, which wanted to completely break with the previous Hungarian constitutional and state administrative system. The proposal requires the approval of two thirds of the members of Parliament. Criticism of the project came, among others, from the Mayor of Budapest, Gergely Karácsony, who commented on the proposals as follows: “First an Obergespan, then a Burgkomitat, and if the government goes back in time at this rate, it will become a kingdom.” However, Tibor Navracsics, minister without portfolio for regional development and the use of EU funds, explained after questions that the responsibilities and tasks would not change as a result of the renaming and that it was only a symbolic act. You can find out more about the history and present of the Hungarian administrative division in our factual dossier:
The system of counties in the local constitution of Hungary.
Proposal to reform the European Union
In a recent resolution presented by Fidesz-KDNP, leading politicians from both parties made suggestions for the future reorganization of the European Union from a Hungarian perspective. These may also have followed a statement in Strasbourg by Dubravka Suica, Vice-President of the European Commission, signaling a willingness to change the EU's founding treaties.
The Fidesz-KDNP parliamentarians' proposal to the Hungarian government envisages abolishing the European Parliament in its current form. It was signed by Parliament Speaker László Kövér, KDNP Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén, KDNP parliamentary group leader István Simicskó and Fidesz parliamentary group leader Máté Kocsis. Instead of the current EU Parliament, they propose strengthening the national parliaments within the EU by no longer electing EU representatives directly, but from the ranks of the national parliaments. In addition, MEPs would give all national parliaments the right to veto EU laws and guarantee them and national governments the right to initiate new EU laws. Their other proposals include the contractual enshrinement of the Christian foundations of the EU, the deletion of the clause about the “ever closer union”, the establishment of a common European army and the rapid EU integration of the Balkan countries. The FIDESZ-KDNP parliamentarians also demanded that the Brussels institutions should not have a say in immigration policy issues.
Hungary supports candidate status for Ukraine and Moldova
Hungary supports the agreed EU position to grant Ukraine and Moldova candidate status for EU accession. This position was officially announced in June after Prime Minister Orbán had previously held joint telephone conversations with his Ukrainian and Moldovan colleagues.
Speaking to Zelensky, Orbán said Hungary has already taken in almost 800,000 Ukrainian refugees and is ready to further cooperate in the energy sector, transport Ukrainian grain by rail and accept more Ukrainian students. During the conversation, Orbán emphasized that Hungary would support Ukraine's application for EU candidate status and that bureaucratic obstacles to Ukraine's actual accession to the EU should be removed as quickly as possible. The Hungarian prime minister told the Ukrainian leader that he would defend this position at the EU summit in Brussels this week. Zelensky expressly thanked him for this on behalf of the Ukrainian people.
Hungary helps Ukraine with 3.5 billion forints
According to a government decision published in the Hungarian State Gazette on July 1, Hungary will provide a total of 3.5 billion forints (more than 8.47 million euros) in aid to war-torn Ukraine. The statement states that the government “agrees with Hungary providing additional support to Ukraine in the spirit of solidarity.”
Spring Eurobarometer survey
In June, the EU published its latest Eurobarometer survey on the future of the Union in times of crisis. Many EU citizens are increasingly concerned, but not without confidence. The survey, conducted in April and May 2022 in the 27 EU Member States through 26,580 interviews, focused on three aspects, namely the war in Ukraine and its economic impact on EU citizens, their attitudes towards the EU and political priorities and values, and voters' willingness to take part in the 2024 European Parliament elections. Overall, the Eurobarometer survey shows that EU citizens agree with the measures taken by the EU since the start of the war in Ukraine and that the crisis has strengthened support for the European Union. At the same time, inflation, high prices and changes that have a negative impact on people's living standards are causing concern and uncertainty, a trend that has continued since the Corona crisis.
Extension of price cuts and economic situation in Hungary
On June 16, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced on his social networks the Hungarian government's decision to extend the current price freeze on essential everyday goods beyond the previous deadline due to the war in Ukraine. This would have expired on July 1, 2022. The extension of the measures means, in particular, the freezing of food prices and the extension of the fuel price freeze until October 1, 2022, as well as a loan moratorium and the freezing of interest rates until December 31, 2022.
Meanwhile, Hungarian inflation climbed into double digits and, according to the latest official figures, was already approaching the 11 percent mark. Towards the end of the month, the forint fell to a historic low against the euro. Over the course of the month it climbed above the “magic” 400 mark several times before finally reaching its previous high of 413.19 forints for one euro at the beginning of July. In order to combat inflation, the Hungarian National Bank raised key interest rates by 185 basis points to 7.75% at the end of June, which far exceeded market expectations. At the same time, the central bank increased its inflation rate forecast for 2022 to 11-12.6%. In March this was still at 7.5-9.8%. The reasons for this are, among other things, the constantly increasing energy and raw material prices as well as the global increase in inflation. The price increases are expected to peak in the fall. Nevertheless, the National Bank expects economic growth of 4.5-5.5% for the current year, which is mainly due to domestic consumption.
New license plates
From July 1st, the new Hungarian license plates will be introduced, which have a different combination of letters and numbers than the previous ones. The redesign of this was necessary because the previous license plates consisting of three numbers and three letters would no longer have been able to be issued in a few years. However, the old license plates do not have to be replaced with the new ones, as the new plates will initially only be issued for vehicles newly registered in Hungary. The coat of arms of Hungary will also be depicted on the signs.
Heat wave in Hungary
At the end of June, temperatures of almost 40 °C were recorded in several places in Hungary, while the highest level heat warning was in effect nationwide from June 27th to July 4th. However, this year's heat wave did not break the temperature record for July 1st, which was set in Csongrád in 1950 with 41.3 °C. June 2022 was the third hottest June since 1901, according to the National Weather Service. The highest temperature ever recorded in Hungary was recorded in Kiskunhalas, southern Hungary, on July 20, 2007, when the thermometer climbed to 41.9 °C.
To the source:
The German-Hungarian Institute for European Cooperation is intended to provide a forum for academic, scientific and political dialogue between Germany and Hungary and to familiarize decision-makers and interested specialist audiences from both countries with topics, debates, processes, thought patterns and ideas from the other country. The aim is to achieve greater understanding, communication and constructive cooperation by objectifying the German-Hungarian discourse and thus renew our Europe together.
We would like to support this goal and publish excerpts with the kind permission of the authors. The complete issue can be found here as a PDF. The institute's website you can reach here.
