Jobbik calls on government to back EU wage union initiative

Budapest (MTI) – The opposition Jobbik party on Monday called on the government to support its European citizens’ initiative aimed at equalising wages throughout the European Union.

Jobbik launched its campaign for a “wage union” in March.

Emigration is undermining Hungary’s welfare and pension systems and is pushing the country to the brink of “Balkanisation”, Dániel Z Kárpát, the party’s deputy group leader, told a press conference. With its aging society, Hungary would be incapable of preserving itself, he said.

Z Kárpát criticised the current and past governments for not having spoken out against wage inequality in the EU.

He said a wage union would lead to a slow but steady rise in wages in Hungary.

Z Kárpát also said the EU’s cohesion policy should be reformed and that the bloc was in need of internal reforms. He added, at the same time, that a wage union would not raise taxation policymaking to the EU level.

The deputy group leader also called on the government to launch a comprehensive home creation and state-subsidised housing programme. Z Kárpát said Hungary was plagued by housing poverty, which he said was a key driver of emigration.