Opposition criticise government admin restructuring plan

Budapest, January 25 (MTI) – The opposition Socialist and Együtt parties on Monday criticised the government’s recently announced administrative restructuring plans.

Government office chief János lázár announced last week the plan that involves restructuring and eliminating more than 70 state-owned institutions and bodies financed from the central budget in a bid to cut red tape.

He said talks will begin between the Prime Minister’s Office and the various ministries within the next few days on how some institutions can be merged into ministries, how outsourcing can be eliminated and the system operated more cheaply and simply. Some 50,000 people are staffed at these institutions, he added.

The Socialists said the measure will serve ruling Fidesz’s aim to build a “a state ruled by the party”. It is the wrong policy pursued by the wrong government which will result in the elimination of an independent, professional state administration system, creating a structure that will make the implementation of Fidesz’ policies easier, Karoly Beke, a board member, told a press conference.

Együtt said the measure lacked any logic and the reason for the listing of the affected institutions was incomprehensible. The restructuring will inevitably lead to the appointment of new state secretaries and their deputies from the ranks of Fidesz, expanding the government, Szabolcs Szabó, a party lawmaker, told a press conference.

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