Coronavirus – Government to introduce further economy protection measures

Hungary’s government will introduce further economy protection measures because the economy must be kept functional during the second wave of the pandemic, Finance Minister Mihály Varga said in an interview published in daily Magyar Nemzet on Saturday.

The planned measures include targeted tax reductions and supporting construction businesses, Varga said.

One of the priorities of the government is to keep the economy functioning, the minister said.

This will require stimulating demand in certain sectors such as tourism and construction, protecting jobs, and providing new production opportunities by supporting investments, Varga said.

Finally, care must be taken to ensure that the billions of public spending on crisis management support efficient and competitive economic solutions, he added.

In the first wave of the pandemic, targeted tax cuts were successfully implemented in crisis-hit sectors. There is also scope for reintroducing such solutions now, and extending the credit repayment moratorium can help families and companies facing temporary difficulties, he said.

Regarding the financing, he indicated that it is possible to use EU funds for a number of public investments that were going to be financed from the national budget, including a wide range of developments from road constructions to hospital renovations.