The position of the Government of Hungary on the proposal adopted by the European Commission today

The European Commission today issued a proposal to suspend in part the commitments from the Cohesion Fund for Hungary in 2013. Our government regards it as an unfounded and unfair proposal.

It is unfathomable why the European Commission has ignored the facts: Hungary’s budget deficit was, for the first time since we joined the European Union in 2004, below 3% in 2011 and will remain so this year as well, which makes it the country with the eighth lowest deficit in the European Union. In response to the European Commission’s forecast of a 3.25% budget deficit in 2013 we took further steps to reduce next year’s deficit by 0.4% of GDP so that it remains below 3% again. Our Prime Minister duly informed the President of the European Commission about these measures.

Consequently, the Hungarian government adopted all the necessary decisions to meet the expectations and requirements of the European Union.

The proposal adopted by the European Commission today is also controversial from a legal point of view: it contradicts the spirit of the Treaties since it imposes sanctions in response to a presupposed future event.

The facts and figures demonstrate that the economic policy of the Hungarian government has taken our country in the right direction – for example, economic growth of 1.7% last year surpassed the growth rate of the EU as a whole and of the euro zone as a whole. At the same time Hungary has been able to decrease its Government debt, which was the legacy of past governments.

Nevertheless, the government remains ready for continued consultations with the institutions of the European Union.

(kormany.hu)