The new Hungarian cabinet was formed on Tuesday when President Tamás Sulyok appointed the ministers of Péter Magyar’s government. However, Péter Magyar requested Sulyok not to be in the photograph taken of the new government since he believes Sulyok is only a clown of former premier Orbán. Therefore, Magyar demanded Sulyok’s resignation multiple times.
At the celebration held in the Sándor Palace, Sulyok handed over the credentials of the 16 ministers. Szabolcs Bóna became minister for agriculture and food economy, László Gajdos minister for the living environment, Márta Görög minister of justice, Zsolt Hegedűs health-care minister, István Kapitány economy and energy minister, András Kármán the finance minister, Vilmos Kátai-Németh the minister for social and family affairs, and Judit Lannert the minister for education and children’s affairs.
Viktória Lőrincz received the post of regional and rural development minister, Anita Orbán foreign affairs minister and Gábor Pósfai minister of the interior. Bálint Ruff will head the Prime Minister’s Office, Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi the defence ministry, Zoltán Tanács the ministry of science and technology, Zoltán Tarr the ministry for social relations and culture, and Dávid Vitézy the ministry of transport and innovation.
Under Hungary’s constitution, the government is formed when the ministers are appointed by the president, upon the recommendation of the prime minister. There was no joint photo taken of Sulyok, Magyar and the ministers. The new ministers will take the oath of office at parliament’s plenary session, scheduled to start at 4pm today, the Hungarian News Agency wrote.
Magyar government will serve the nation, not the PM
The Tisza government will serve the nation, not the prime minister, and its cabinet consists of ministers who have already proven themselves in their fields and are capable of making decisions from day one, Magyar said in a speech introducing his cabinet to parliament on Tuesday.
Magyar recalled that exactly one month ago, on April 12, Hungarians granted the Tisza Party a historic mandate. With unprecedented turnout, they delivered a clear verdict, he said, declaring that they wanted change and thanking the public for their advance of trust.
He rejected arguments that voters did not know what or whom they were voting for, stressing that unlike the outgoing, “failed” ruling party, the Tisza’s goals had been clear and addressed Hungary’s real problems.
Comparing the “shocking state” of child protection institutions and hospitals he had seen during his campaign with the luxury standards of government and ministry buildings he recently visited, Magyar said: “While Hungary was crippled, plundered, and abandoned, the outgoing government spent over 1,000 billion forints (EUR 2.6bn) upgrading its own buildings and ministries to luxury standards.“
Magyar cited as examples the Carmelite Monastery that housed the prime minister’s office, saying the “Carmelite Palace” had served as the prime minister’s residence too, as well as Antal Rogan’s “luxury ministry” for the Prime Minister’s Office, and the new Interior Ministry building.
The previous government, he said, knew hundreds were freezing to death in unheated homes each winter and saw the conditions in which the most abandoned children lived, yet they continued to enjoy the luxury they had allocated for themselves from billions in public funds.
Magyar called the previous government’s actions in respect of the country and public funds “a disgrace“, and put it to Fidesz MPs in opposition and their colleagues “who lack the courage to take up their seats” to ask themselves how they could “look in the mirror each morning” and live with their conscience.
“You built luxury palaces for yourselves with the Hungarian people’s money while millions suffered… You brought shame on what democratic representation means in Hungary.“
Healing these wounds would be a long road ahead, but his government was ready to begin the work, he said.
Magyar said the new government’s goal was to build a functional, humane Hungary, and its structure was set up to serve this purpose, adding that the Tisza government would function as a team, with clear responsibilities and transparent decisions, as this is the only way to restore trust in the state, which, he added, had been lost in recent years.
He said the government would replace sprawling super-ministries with clear, focused portfolios, with each key area assigned its own ministry or state secretariat. The ministers of health, justice, education and child welfare, and finance will each hold veto power in government decision-making, Magyar said. While all ministers were equal partners, he added, some portfolios — health, justice, education and child welfare, and finance — played a pivotal role in the process of changing the system and faced the most complex and challenging tasks.
Turning to his cabinet, Magyar said he had asked Zsolt Hegedus to lead and reorganise the health ministry. “Few experts in Hungary today understand the daily operational problems of health care, the structural flaws of the institutional system, and the real situation of the medical profession as he does,” Magyar said, adding that Hegedus, a doctor, had worked for decades to make Hungarian health care more transparent, humane, and professionally sustainable.
The goal, he said, was to ensure that the state could guarantee safe, accessible, and high-quality health care for all Hungarians.
He pledged to increase state health-care spending by at least 500 billion forints annually and launch scholarship programmes for the most critically affected professions.
Magyar also announced that Marta Gorog will serve as justice minister. As dean of the Faculty of Law and Political Sciences at the University of Szeged, her scholarly and professional work over the past decades had proven her expertise and institution-building ability, he said, adding that she faced a monumental task, as the rule of law had been “systematically dismantled” over the past decades, with power trouncing the law, private interests overriding legislation, and brute force superseding constitutionalism.
“One of the vital tasks ahead is the moral and institutional restoration of Hungary’s rule of law,” Magyar declared. “We must build a country where the power of the law is stronger than the power of the state, where the public interest takes precedence over private interest, and where trust in the justice system once again becomes a natural part of Hungarians’ lives.“
Magyar said Judit Lanner, hitherto involved in educational research for more than three decades, will head the ministry of education and youth affairs.
He added that she placed particular importance on addressing educational inequalities, improving the performance of the school system, and addressing the status of the teaching profession.
As a researcher and analyst, she has closely observed and tracked how “Hungary has been torn in two, even in the classroom,” he said. Lannert, he added, would work towards an education system that began with early childhood education, where children would learn to ask questions, think, and collaborate instead of feeling anxious, he said, adding that she would work for an education system “in which educators, including nursery nurses, preschool teachers, or school teachers, are among the most respected members of Hungarian society.”
He said Andras Karman, the new minister of finance, “has worked as one of the most qualified experts in Hungarian economic and financial life over the past decades.” He added that Karman had gained significant experience in public administration, public finance, financial stability, and economic policy planning.
“He is taking on a difficult … legacy, the true depths of which are only now beginning to unfold before us,” Magyar said. He added that the government would launch a tax-reduction programme, raise pensions and social benefits, while at the same time restoring the Hungarian state’s financial credibility and securing EU funds.
Magyar said Anita Orban, the new foreign minister and deputy prime minister, was a politician, diplomat, energy-policy expert, and international corporate executive who had outstanding experience and a precise understanding of how international decision-making worked. She has been tasked with making Hungary a strong ally and a country that takes the initiative once again, Magyar said, adding that the government’s goal was to restore and strengthen the country’s international relations.
“We intend to once again become a respected and proactive member of the Western alliance system, while consistently representing Hungarian national interests in the European Union and NATO,” Magyar said, adding that Visegrad cooperation should be rebuilt, since “the peoples of central Europe are stronger together than they are apart”.
He said Balint Ruff, the new minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office, was endowed with administrative experience, strategic thinking, and public service that made him “exceptionally well-suited to be one of the key figures coordinating the transition”.
“The Prime Minister’s Office is not viewed as an imperial centre, nor as a giant octopus that subsumes everything under itself. Neither is it seen as an executive machine for the Prime Minister’s will, or a propaganda factory, a centre for producing false national consultations and megalomaniacal power schemes,” Magyar said.
The Prime Minister’s Office must function as the “streamlined brain” of the Hungarian state, he said. He outlined its tasks as coordinating the work of the transition, ensuring that government decisions are swift, clear, and professionally sound, and enabling the state to once again plan, execute, and think long-term.
Magyar once again called on public officials and institutional leaders present in the room, and who had previously been asked to resign, to step down. He referred to them as “Orban’s puppets”, adding that, in his view, they had significantly contributed to dismantling the rule of law and democracy. He called on them to quit by May 31.
Magyar said Szabolcs Bona will serve as minister of agriculture and food economy, adding that Bona had gained decades of experience as an agricultural engineer and corporate executive in the fields of crop production, animal husbandry, agricultural trade, and agricultural financing. He described him as “not only a great professional and patriot, but also a stubborn man”.
The Hungarian countryside and agricultural sector need someone like this, he said, “someone who does not bow down at the first sign of difficulty, who knows what it feels like to work through an entire year knowing that a single hailstorm, drought, disease, or bad decision can ruin months or even years of work.”
Bona will work to restore honour, security, and a future to Hungarian agriculture and the food industry, he said.
It must make sense for the next generation to stay in the countryside, farm, start a family, and pass on the knowledge that has sustained this country for centuries, he added.
Magyar described Gabor Posfai, the new interior minister, as someone who has led large organisations both in Hungary and abroad throughout his career — an operational leader, “who knows exactly how to run complex systems effectively and humanely at the same time”.
The prime minister said that in recent years, thousands of police officers, firefighters, correctional officers, and intelligence agency staff in Hungary had learned what it felt like when politics took over, dominated, and rendered their professions impossible. The goal was for law enforcement to once again serve exclusively the law and the security of the Hungarian people, he added.
Together with the minister, he pledged the government would restore respect for law enforcement officers and create predictable career paths and a professional working environment for them. In the field of sports, the focus would be on training the next generation, supporting recreational sports, and creating a healthier society, he said.
Magyar noted that Laszlo Gajdos, who will lead the newly created ministry for the living environment, had headed the Nyiregyhaza Zoo for nearly three decades, buiding an internationally recognised institution. “All of Hungary has learned that when Laszlo Gajdos commits his heart, soul, and expertise, success follows,” he added.
He called it “incomprehensible” that Hungary, a country with a unique natural heritage threatened by climate change, desertification, and unparalleled biodiversity, had not had a dedicated ministry for environmental protection for the past decade and a half.
The prime minister expressed confidence that Gajdos would forge a true national consensus on this unifying issue and demonstrate that protecting the living environment was “the essence of tangible patriotism”.
Magyar said Istvan Kapitany, the new minister of economic and energy affairs, faced the monumental task of breaking Hungary free from an economic model built on cheap labour, assembly-line factories, and the artificial empowerment of a narrow elite. The Hungarian economy, he added, must now prioritise productivity, innovation, technological development, and high-value Hungarian expertise.
He said Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi, the new defence minister, had been tasked with restoring the professional prestige, respect, and combat readiness of the Hungarian Armed Forces, so that soldiers once again felt the country’s trust, respect, and appreciation for their service. His mission, Magyar added, was to ensure Hungary had a defence force that inspired “confidence and pride” in its citizens every day.
David Vitezy, the new transport and investment minister, he said, would tackle a sector in “deep operational crisis”. While other European countries built 21st-century transport systems, the outgoing minister “focused on building his own empire”. Vitezy’s task was to make railways a symbol of Hungarian modernisation again, ensure rural Hungarians no longer felt punished for needing transport, make Hungary’s roads passable, and ensure investments served the public good rather than political prestige or private interests, he added.
Introducing Vilmos Katai-Nemeth as the social and family affairs minister, Magyar noted that he is Hungary’s first visually impaired minister. “Perhaps this is why he understands more acutely what the state has chosen to ignore in recent years,” Magyar said, adding that the queues of abandoned Hungarians were “endlessly long”. His mission would be to make social policy a domain of genuine care and state responsibility, he declared.
The minister’s priorities will include strengthening child protection, elder care, support for people with disabilities, and the security of Hungarian families, he said.
For Zoltan Tarr, the new minister for social relations and culture, “the goal is to build a country where culture unites, communities grow stronger, civil society is respected, and every Hungarian — whether in Budapest, a remote village, or beyond the borders — belongs to the same nation,” he said.
Zoltan Tanacs, the new science and technology minister, will work to restore national confidence, uplift the country, and build a shared future through science and technology, Magyar said.
Viktoria Lorincz, the new minister of rural and settlement development, will “restore the Hungarian countryside’s self-esteem, strength, and freedom to make decisions,” he said. The government, he added, would return powers and institutions to local governments, reduce regional inequalities, and strengthen local communities.
The prime minister again described the task ahead as historic in scale: reversing two decades of destruction, division, stagnation, and lost trust while transforming Hungary into a functional, liveable country that believes in itself.
“We do not claim we will not make mistakes — we will, and when we do, we will admit to them,” he said, urging MPs to support the government’s work with proposals, criticism, and by highlighting real problems.
There will be debates, he acknowledged, but “all voices — the Hungarian people’s and the experts’ — will be heard.”
Magyar called on every Hungarian, regardless of which party they voted for, to monitor the government’s work, hold it accountable, debate its actions, and speak out if it strayed from the path they were “now embarking on together”.
“Hungary is the common home of every Hungarian, and the government being formed today will be the government of every Hungarian,” the prime minister declared.
Ruff pledges ‘the greatest reckoning of all times’
The new Prime Minister’s Office will be “the engine driving the regime change“, Bálint Ruff, the nominee to head the ministry, said at his confirmation hearing in parliament’s judicial and constitutional committee on Tuesday, and pledged restoration of the rule of law in Hungary and “the greatest political and economic reckoning of all times.“
At the recent election, the Tisza Party won “a clear mandate to restore the rule of law, to serve the homeland“, he said. “We need to restore a state in which the state does not harm but serves its citizens, in which people are not discriminated against based on their views,” he added. “We must restore a state in which children are protected,” he said, adding that “hundreds of billions of forints cannot be spent on authorities harassing people.“
“Public funds will be public funds; there is no room for propaganda in the state machinery, and its staff will have to serve; we must restore the division between the branches of government,” he said, adding that “politicians are not omnipotent“.
Ensuring that Tisza delivers on all its pledges made in the campaign
The task of the PM’s Office will be to provide political analyses and make recommendations, Ruff said, adding that his ministry would not propose legislation. “We’ll have the individual ministries for that.” “My task will be to assist the prime minister in all areas, as well as all ministers in keeping the directions outlined in Tisza’s programme … my task will be to ensure that Tisza delivers on all its pledges made in the campaign,” he said.
Ruff introduced two nominees for state secretary: Bence Csontos, an international affairs expert, who will serve as parliamentary state secretary and Andras Biro-Nagy, who holds a PhD in political sciences and will serve as state secretary for policy. In addition, there will be a strategic and a communications state secretary position, Ruff said.
Legislation will be enacted on the stipulation that the state may not engage in hate speech, defamation, or the stigmatization of others, Ruff said. He slammed the tenure of the Fidesz government as “the country’s worst 16 years out of the past 36” which had turned Hungary into the “poorest and most corrupt country” in the EU.
KSH figures can no longer be trusted
Ruff said that during a tour of three ministry buildings with Prime Minister Peter Magyar on Monday, he had seen “extravagance, waste of money, luxury and ostentation“. Fidesz committee members, including former justice minister Bence Tuzson, interrupted the hearing and called his statements lies. Ruff pledged to launch “the greatest ever economic and political reckoning” if appointed minister.
Further, Ruff said that the secret services would be returned to where they belong: under the ministries of the interior, defence and justice. The finance minister will be responsible for the professional oversight of the Central Statistical Office (KSH), and that it would soon become an independent institution again “whose figures could once more be trusted,” he said.
He said one of his first tasks as minister would be establishment of the Central European Press and Media Foundation (KESMA), and the last would be “the recall of the Russians.” He said that while he will not be the one to bring about the said reckoning, he would have the job of ensuring that another branch of power could operate unshackled.
Asset Recovery Office
Regarding establishment of the Asset Recovery Office, Ruff said the relevant legislation proposal would be submitted to parliament by the 141 Tisza lawmakers. According to plans, the office will start work on July 1, within the “strictest and most reliable” rule of law framework, he said.
Former PM Orbán’s MP arrested 48 hours after he lost his immunity
Anti-corruption regulations will also be extremely stringent, he said, adding that Fidesz-KDNP had taken 20 trillion forints (EUR 56.2bn) from public coffers. Ruff said he hoped that some of it will be recovered. He called it a crime that Fidesz-KDNP “treated EU funds as their own while letting the country fall into ruin.”
“They abused the country, threatened it, drove people away, and made them sick, even bombarding them with war psychosis. But at least that has stopped, and my ministry will never do anything like that,” he declared.
The committee approved the nomination of the minister-designate with eight votes in favor and three against.
Premier Péter Magyar calls out former government for post-election spending
Magyar said decisions on post-election spending commitments had been taken at “at least” seven ministries without consulting him in a post on Facebook on Tuesday. Magyar had asked the ministers of the former government to report on any new post-election spending commitments by 10:00 in the evening on Monday. A table supplied summarising the expenditures shows Gergely Gulyás, the outgoing head of the Prime Minister’s Office, “lied when he said such spending didn’t take place“, Magyar said in the post. “Minor and major decisions are among the expenditures. The Tisza Party will scrutinise each one,” he added.
Anita Orbán announces major foreign policy shift, discussing EU funds, migration, EU demands, Hungarian troops in Ukraine
Tisza set to upend Hungarian economy: price caps, windfall taxes, VAT cuts, free competition, the Hungarian euro and Russian oil
Mihaly Varga – former Minister of Finance – founding Father of the Fidesz Political Party, an “inner sanctum” individual friendship with the former disgraced and humiliated – Prime Minister – Victor Mihaly. Orban to-gether with Mihaly Varga a founding Father of Fidesz must be OUTED – Mihaly Varga as the Governor of the Central Bank of Hungary.
Mihaly Varga – in the decade he held the Senior Portfolio in the Orban Government as the Minister of Finance and prior to that appointment positions within Orbans Government related to Financial and Economic policy making and direction, his “shuffle” by Victor Mihaly. Orban to the position he NOW holds wrongfully being the Governor of the Central bank of Hungary – he MUST be asked to re-sign.
Varga is a HIGH risk FACTOR.
Varga his “place” with Victor Mihaly. Orban – in-side of the POWER house of Fidesz, his friendships and relationships with the Oligarchy – his Governorship – is High Risk that the question of TRUST in his character can not be Over-looked.
Mihaly Varga as the Minister of Finance left his portfolio resembling a gargantuan cataclysmic MESS – the state of the economic and financial “balance sheet” of Hungary.
Our in-coming new Government under Prime Minister – Peter Magyar – Tisza have INHERITED – the created MESS of Mihaly Varga, that MUST not be Forgotten.
Varga over time in-side Hungary then in-side the European Union was faced with a “double edge” sword in that he :
(1) – looked upon in Hungary by those of far greater “learned” brains and intelligence – in the areas of Finance & Economics – the name Mihaly Varga through what he “designed” and “set in motion” with Victor Mihaly. Orban the policies and direction(s) of the Hungarian economy – the DISASTER’s of his Policies with Orban – the name Mihaly Varga lost ALL respect of any competece in his Financial and Economic opinions.
(2) – in-side the European Union same as what has occurred in Hungary – behind his back did remains somewhat of a “laughing stock” spoken as a Dud, in the lack of ability interpreting the direction of Economic and Finance “paths” – the future for Hungary and that of the European Union.
Mihaly Varga inside Hungary and inside the European Union became remains an EMBARRASSMENT to Hungary.
Mihaly Varga – name is rightly “on the list” as a Major Player “in bed” with Victor Mihaly. Orban – who contributed to the “bleeding” of millions upon millions of Hungarians individually and of our country.
Mihaly Varga – had his “palms greased” – got his pockets FILLED through the position the portfolio he held that as the Minister of Finance – under the appointment his “Founding” joint Father name of Fidesz with the “disgraced” former Prime Minister – Victor Mihaly. Orban.
Mihaly Varga “carries” much much much LUGGAGE being part of the “inner sanctum” of the Victor Mihaly. Orban “regime” and through knowledge of his past – he is of extreme HIGH Risk – to the FUTURE of Hungary and must be re-moved from his current position as the Governor of the Central Bank of Hungary, a position he CAN make decisions “of favour” to those of the Orban – Oligarchy – the “inner sanctum” – down the line – of the HUMILIATED in there DEFEAT thrown out of office of being the Government of Hungary – the Fidesz Political Party.
TISZA is basically marxist socialism by the backdoor! That is not to say of course that Viktor Orban’s unbridled capitalism by the backdoor was any better! Both are extremist, polar opposite ideologies! This is what Hungary finds itself in after the commies have either genocided their nobility and intelligentsia or expelled them from the country, or simply made the political situation so unfavourable for them that most had no choice but to leave! Of course, this happened during Orban’s time as well, and will happen during the Magyar regime just the same! Anyway you look at it, Hungary is fc.kd, and that is simply the result of the leftover braindead population of useless eaters, parasites, robotniks, ball sport afficionados, low-bred greedy upstarts, commies, romas, kikes, kike-kristians, and the like!
Wizz Air sell good value one way tickets from Budapest. There’s no need to suffer in silence in a country whose government you consider distasteful.