Weekly govt press briefing about Rio Olympics, quota referendum and other important decisions

Budapest, August 25 (MTI) – The government considers sports as a “strategic sector and a national cause”, János Lázár, the government office chief, told a weekly press briefing on Thursday. The Oct. 2 referendum on the EU’s migrant quota measures will be “historic”, he said. The Hungarian State Treasury will become the only central agency responsible for payments of state supports and public benefits, Lázár said.

Sport ‘national cause’

The achievements of Hungary’s athletes in the Rio Olympics and in past years will help the country’s bid to host the Olympics, Lázár said.

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He called Hungary one of the most successful “sporting nations” in the world. Hungary is the only top Olympic performer not to have hosted the Games yet, he said. All conditions are in place for Budapest to organise such events, he added.

The government will further strengthen its commitment to sports in future by providing all the infrastructure and financing necessary to ensure that adults and children have daily exercise and the new generation of athletes have at their disposal the best facilities possible, Lázár said.

The economic cabinet has decided to provide priority funding for the European Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships Hungary will host in 2017, he said.

Lázár gave a detailed outline of the past few meetings held by the newly set-up strategic and economic cabinets.

Meetings addressed planned changes to the institutional system supporting the state administration, including a plan to lay off 20 percent of the workforce.

He noted that the State Treasury will become the only central agency responsible for payments of state supports and public benefits.

The strategic cabinet has decided to continue plans to build new barracks for firefighters and new law-enforcement facilities, with 5,000 new workplaces created by 2018, Lazar said, adding that the government has rescinded its decision to build a prison in Batonyterenye, in northern Hungary.

A decision was also made on tightening conditions for establishing windfarms in an effort to protect the environment, he said.

Further, he noted decisions to approve Hungary’s Digital Child Protection Strategy and establish social care centres.

Lázár said that the strategic cabinet reviewed a plan to set up courts specialising in public administration matters with Tünde Handó, head of the National Judicial Office. Responding to a question, Lázár dismissed the claim that the new courts would handle “sensitive political issues”, saying the aim is to settle public administration issues speedily. The government will launch cross-party talks concerning the system, he added.

Lázár denied information that András Patyi, the president of the public administration university, would be appointed to head the new system, but did not rule out the possibility of appointing judges with a background in public administration.

Answering a question concerning Flórián Farkas, the prime minister’s commissioner on Roma affairs, he said Farkas had attended a hearing by the European anti-fraud office OLAF and questions not answered at the hearing would be answered in writing. The government can provide reassuring answers to OLAF, he added.

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