In a significant financial shift, the Orbán government has decided to scrap or drastically reduce funding for a wide range of projects, including plans for a new Student City, improvements to the Budapest-Belgrade railway, ambulance procurement, and even the renovation of the iconic Chain Bridge.
In a significant financial shift, the Orbán government has decided to scrap or drastically reduce funding for a wide range of projects, including plans for a new Student City, improvements to the Budapest-Belgrade railway, ambulance procurement, and even the renovation of the iconic Chain Bridge. A 130-point austerity decree The government issued a 130-point decree in the Hungarian Gazette, bearing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s signature, outlining various cost-saving measures that will affect multiple sectors. The cuts primarily involve halting or scaling back additional state support for major ongoing projects, Népszava reports. A recurring phrase throughout the decree, “No further central budget funding is required,” clearly signals the government’s intention to tighten the purse strings. Some initiatives have been scrapped altogether, while others will receive significantly less funding than initially planned. Student City, Chain Bridge, Opera House affected
Among the affected projects is the Student City development in Budapest, where the government has decided against allocating more funds to acquire the necessary properties. The historic Chain Bridge and the Buda Castle Tunnel are also losing out, with no more financial support for their reconstruction or the surrounding public areas. The Hungarian State Opera House, led by Szilveszter Ókovács, is another casualty, with its operational funding also being slashed. Cuts have extended to Hungary’s cultural memory initiatives as well. The government’s previous commitment to open the House of Fates Holocaust Memorial for Child Victims has been revoked, as has funding for the Museum of the Victims of Communism. Even projects related to genealogical research and family history have seen their budgets shrink. Bad news for MÁV, medical research and clinical trials
Bad news for MÁV, medical research and clinical trials
For Hungary’s national railways (MÁV), the decree brings more bad news. A previous decision to fund the assessment of non-essential railway land has now been reversed. Transportation projects in the Városliget area have also been halted, with no further investments planned for the region.
The healthcare sector hasn’t been spared either. The government has shelved its Health Industry Strategy and withdrawn funds earmarked for medical research and clinical trials. Ambulance procurement and local production of ambulances will see major cuts as well, with the government now canceling a previous allocation of over HUF 2.2 billion (EUR 5.6 million).
These are just a few highlights from Orbán’s 130-point decree, which affects numerous sectors with austerity measures aimed at reducing the government’s financial commitments.
Opposition DK calls on govt to abandon ‘austerity‘
The opposition Democratic Coalition (DK) has accused the government of planning to usher in an “austerity package” containing 130 measures. At an online press briefing on Saturday, DK lawmaker László Varjú demanded its withdrawal and charged the government with “entering a spiral of austerity”. “Just as the country is on the point of defending itself, the Orban government is attacking it, stripping families of money and opportunities”.
He accused the government of plotting to prevent local authorities from buying ambulances, to withdraw funding for renovating village byways, and to take away financing from Budapest just when it is fighting the current flood wave. Varjú insisted that more than 4 billion forints was being ploughed into religious education. “So the money’s there, but it isn’t being used for the right purposes,” he said.