Hungarian minister Nagy worried about future of European industry

National Economy Minister Márton Nagy called for joint, comprehensive support programme for electric vehicles at an informal meeting of EU competitiveness ministers in Genk, Belgium, on Friday.

Improving the bloc’s competitiveness is crucial, Nagy said, adding that the EU must keep abreast of the US and China, which he said ploughed significant funds into supporting their own industry.

Nagy said the EU would need to involve new resources for the green transition as it returns to enforcing the Maastricht criteria and stricter budgetary policies that had been put on hold during the Covid pandemic.

Development bank, commercial bank and national bank resources would have a significant role in future, he said.

At the same time, the minister urged a new approach to industrial policy, and a more effective, targeted funding for sectors or products, in line with environmental goals.

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He proposed an EU scheme to support the users and manufacturers of electric cars.

On Ukraine’s EU accession, Nagy said the integration process was “unprepared”, its effect on member states not clear. Sectors such as agriculture and logistics were already suffering, and distortions were becoming visible in other sectors, too, he said.

He called for consultations with various sectors’ players, noting that Hungarian, Czech, Slovak and Polish logistics companies had written a letter to the EC, outlining “concrete proposals”. Their competitiveness is being eroded by the agreement between Hungary and Ukraine, he added. The letter is asking for regulations ensuring that Ukrainian drivers had to abide by the educational, technical and other specifications pertaining to EU drivers, he said.

Those requirements would ensure equal competition and operating requirements.