This is the eleventh time since the return of Viktor Orban to power in 2010 that the Prime Minister has used his super-majority in Parliament to change the Constitution. To complete his “conservative revolution”, in his view, it was appropriate to restore the territorial division to its former glory.
Thus, from January 1, 2023, on behalf of the “historical traditions” from “Millennial Hungary”the departments will be called again « county” (County of Vár) and the prefects will recover their title of “châtelain” or “seigneur” (Fospan). This is how the country’s dignitaries were called from the Middle Ages, until their suppression in 1950 by the communist regime.
Control of the premises
At the passage of this legislative package including pell-mell the vote on the 2023 budget and the alignment of local elections with the European elections, four emblematic public squares of Budapest would be, so to speak, nationalized since placed under the supervision of the 5th district, bastion of Fidesz , the party of Orban. Decentralization was, however, one of the major projects in Hungary, after the fall of communism, with a view to joining the European Union.
The 1990 law, which broke with the administrative network established under Soviet domination, is one of the pillars of the country’s democratic transition, backed by the local level. The liberal and ecologist mayor of the capital, Gergely Karacsony, main opponent of Viktor Orban, has promised legal action. About the name of the Hungarian provinces, he denounces a maneuver of diversion. “Dealing with such a thing in the midst of galloping inflation, the fall of the forint and the economic and energy crisis is ridiculous, if not pathetic”, he launched.
Financial pressure
In fact, for Viktor Orban, bad news is piling up on the economic and social front. In response to soaring prices, the champion of “illiberal democracy” must find resources to finance its very costly policy on the prices of energy, fuels and essential products. By cutting back on the tax system of 450,000 self-employed workers who will have the choice between paying four times more taxes or taking refuge in the informal economy, the government is facing a wave of demonstrations.
Fresh money is lacking, but the recovery plan funds that Budapest needs remain stuck in Brussels. Hungary is the last EU country not to have benefited from it. In all, 5.8 billion euros in grants and 9.6 billion in preferential loans are pending. The forint continues to weaken against the euro. And the EU, which has set in motion a mechanism for suspending the rest of European funds against Hungary, could still toughen its tone. The European Commission sent, on Wednesday 20 July, a new warning to Budapest, considering that “Hungary has not submitted adequate corrective measures”. Brussels gives him a month to react.
Last chance negotiations
The grievances are multiple. Budapest is accused of corruption, damage to the financial interests of the EU and violation of the rule of law. In June 2021, the Hungarian government passed a law against “promotion of homosexuality” at school which outrages most European capitals. The majority in power, which condemns EU sanctions against Russia, refuses to play the solidarity card, in view of the gas shortages that are looming this winter. Finally, the deputies continued the game of provocation, on Tuesday July 19, by voting for a motion to limit the power of the European institutions, considering the dissolution of the European Parliament.
To break the impasse and unblock the first payments, Viktor Orban instructed the Minister for Regional Development, Tibor Navracsics, former European Commissioner in charge of education between 2014 and 2019, to lead the exchanges with Brussels. “The past month and a half has paid off”, assures the emissary, for whom “the positions of the Commission and the government are very close to each other”. He hopes to formalize a compromise this second half. Hurry up. If the EU does not approve the Hungarian recovery plan by the end of the year, 70% of the support initially planned will be lost.