Government weekly press briefing about Sunday shopping and teachers’ movement

Budapest, March 31 (MTI) – The government considers the debate around Sunday shopping restrictions closed, and it is now up to the voters to decide if they want to review the law, government office chief János Lázár told a government news conference on Thursday. The government feels it is wrong for the Tanítanék (I want to teach) teachers’ movement to “take politics into schools”, but does not underestimate the civil disobedience protest organised by the movement on Wednesday, Lázár said.

Government considers Sunday shopping ban debate closed

He said economic statistics had dispelled retailers’ fears about the measure, as retail trade is constantly on the rise. Consumption has increased by 3 to 4 percent since the law entered into effect, he added.

Lázár also rejected the suggestion that retail employment had fallen since the implementation of the measure, arguing that thousands of retail jobs had been created since last March.

Lázár : wrong to take politics into schools

Speaking at a regular government press briefing on Thursday, Lázár said the protest must ultimately be considered a failure, arguing that teachers and students consider negotiations to be more important than protesting.

He insisted that the Tanítanék movement’s action had resulted in failure since “out of Hungary’s 3,200 schools there were real and substantial protests at one hundred only”.

“Other governments the next day would ridicule the protests but our government takes them seriously,” he added.

Concerning the possibility of abolishing the central schools manager (Klik), Lázár said the government had not come to a decision on the matter since the issue had not yet been debated at the government-sponsored education roundtable. He emphasised that the state has no intention of relinquishing its role in managing the country’s schools.

On another topic, Lázár said the government sold 47 hectares of state farmland during the second round of auctions.

Concerning the CSOK home purchase subsidy programme, he said a total of 24,000 people had applied for the subsidy so far and 2,000 families had already received their grants.

Regarding the issue of gambling, which is to be addressed at next Monday’s cabinet session, Lázár said the outcomes of lawsuits in the upcoming period should determine the extent to which the public-interest restriction of one-armed bandits and gaming weighs against the curtailment of the freedoms of businesses. He said that his view was that stricter rules would be to the benefit of citizens and would obviate the possibility for out-of-court settlements.

The minister also announced that all state payments will be executed by the Hungarian State Treasury, which is to be reorganised. Lázár said the two-stage restructuring of the treasury would take place this and next summer. All other state bodies that currently make disbursements will be abolished, he added. Disbursements include health-fund payments and pensions, while tasks related to professional policymaking will remain with individual ministries, Lázár said. Changes of personnel can also be expected as part of the restructuring, he added.

On behalf of the government, Lázár expressed sorrow over the death of Nobel laureate author Imre Kertész.

Photo: MTI

Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters