EC suspends some funding for Hungary (EUR 2.36bn) over “technical dispute”
Budapest (MTI) – The European Commission has suspended 700 billion forints (EUR 2.36bn) in Hungary’s European Union funding after it found fault with the selection process during the 2007-2013 budget cycle, deputy state secretary Nandor Csepreghy said at a press conference on Wednesday.
Hungary’s dispute with the EC on the matter is of a “technical” nature, Csepreghy said, adding that the cabinet is weighing possible solutions.
The correction the EC prescribes for such cases is usually below 10 percent of total funding, which could mean around 20 billion forints, Csepreghy said. This amount may not be used for the original programme but may be used for other development goals, he explained.
No developments can be halted due to the EC decision, he said.
Csepreghy noted that the former Socialist government’s selection process had been used during the period in question.
The ruling Fidesz party said in response that it will ask the government to do its utmost to ensure that no economic development programmes should be halted because of the “technical debate” that has developed with Brussels as a result “of the Socialists’ misappropriate selection process.” The party’s parliamentary group said in a statement that “unlike the Socialists, the now ruling Fidesz government has not, and will not, allow a single penny of EU funding available for Hungary to be lost.”
The opposition parties LMP, Egyutt and Hungarian Liberal Party (MLP) in response demanded that the government should release the EC’s related report to the public without delay.
Erzsebet Schmuck, a lawmaker for LMP, said the party had repeatedly stated concern of suspected corruption surrounding the public procurement system and the selection process of projects. Laszlo Heltai, an economic policy spokesman for the party, said that the Prime Minister’s Office had received from the EC the auditors’ report stating concrete concerns already in February which must be released.
Egyutt said that ruling Fidesz must stop pointing the finger at the previous government since it has had five years in government to correct the “alleged discrepancies” in the use of funds.
Zoltan Bodnar, an economic expert of the Liberal party, said the EC’s measure could be expected since Brussels and Budapest had been engaged in a debate for months over the transformation of the selection process Hungary had carried out without consultations with the European Commission.
Radical nationalist Jobbik called for an overall change in the Hungarian public procurement regime and for installing “a new, transparent” system.
Deputy group leader Daniel Z Karpat said that the EC’s decision is “no accident,” making reference to press reports saying that Brussels had looked into thousands of contracts “in connection with which the suspicion of corruption emerged.”
Photo:Â kozpontban.hu
Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters
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