Migration not needed for successful economic policy, says Foreign Minister

The policies pursued by Hungary over the past ten years have demonstrated that migration is not a necessity for a successful economic policy, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said at an OECD ministerial meeting in Paris on Friday.

In his address to the session centred on the integration of immigrants, Szijjártó warned against conflating migration and job market challenges, saying that the two had “nothing to do with each other” and a country could also achieve economic growth using its own resources.

He said international organisations were still trying to present migration as a solely positive phenomenon whereas “this is far from true”. Szijjártó said migration posed a serious global security risk for migrant-sending countries, transit countries and destination countries alike.

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“Any declaration made by an international organisation that is silent on the security aspects of migration and the security risks it poses is unacceptable to us,” Szijjártó said. “This includes statements made by the OECD, which paints a false picture of migration,” he said, arguing that the organisation gave the impression that migration was about responding to labour market challenges.

Every country should shape its own migration policy, Szijjártó said, adding that it was unacceptable to set expectations, or try to put pressure on countries, regarding this issue.

“Instead of migration, we believe in low taxes, the education of the Hungarian people and family policy,” the minister said.

The Hungarian government will maintain low taxes, continue to support companies doing business in Hungary with a view to promoting technological investments, and will continue to strengthen its support for families as well as the dual vocational education system, Szijjártó said.

“These measures are the key to the success of the Hungarian model,” he said. “The Hungarian model proves that migration is not a necessity for responding to labour market challenges or pursuing a successful economic policy.”

During a break in the meeting, Szijjártó held bilateral talks with South Africa’s Interior Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and Danish Immigration and Integration Minister Mattias Tesfaye.

Source: MTI