Trade neutrality as an EU member? Fidesz launches ‘National Consultation’ on economic issues
Mate Kocsis, the ruling party’s group leader, said on Monday that Fidesz proposes holding a “National Consultation” public survey on “trade neutrality, support for small and medium-sized enterprises, wage increases, employee loans, as well as housing and family support.”
Given the economic upheavals following the pandemic and the war, new economic solutions were needed to put the country back on the right track, he said during a break of the two-day Fidesz-Christian Democrat group meeting in Esztergom, in northern Hungary.
Hungary’s economic outlook “is good”, he said, adding that the proposed new measures would further strengthen the economy and people’s prosperity.
At the same time, “the European leadership is waging a trade cold war,” isolating itself from the East’s economies, he said, adding that “Hungarian neutrality” was best served by openness towards both East and West and that it should break off trade ties neither with the West nor the East.
Kocsis said Fidesz believed in the government’s policy outlook, but it always sought the public’s views on sensitive issues.
Kocsis said the public must have a say on whether they concur with “the economic isolation represented by the Brussels leadership” or whether they want to maintain “free-flowing Eastern and Western commercial and economic pathways.”
They should also be asked about support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the government’s key aim of helping SMEs gain access to capital and new financial instruments.
Also, one of the questions concerns a wage rise, which requires a new deal with employers. He also proposed raising the minimum wage to 400,000 forints (EUR 1,000) and the average wage to 1 million forints “within the foreseeable future”—which he called a “realistic goal.”
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Meanwhile, the questionnaire will canvass views on whether young people taking up a job should receive an interest-free loan for whatever purpose they see fit.
The government wants create affordable new places of residence such as dormitories and to help young people buy their first home using state-subsidised loans with very low interest rates. This will also be contained in the survey, he said.
Further, a question about family support will be included, Kocsis said, adding that not only did the Hungarian right and left disagree on this, but the government and the European Commission were also at loggerheads over the issue.
The government wants to double the family tax allowance and other types of family support “may also be discussed”.
Kocsis said the government could consider the party group’s proposal at its meeting this week.
He said the proposed measures were unlikely to be met with “a roar of applause” in Brussels, so it was necessary to get solid backing for them from Hungarian citizens.
Can´t wait to see the leading questions, this time. At least you know how you SHOULD be answering them.
All to lend legitimacy to our Politicians actions. No more, no less.
Total waste of tax-payers money, again.
Leading questions that will be like “would you like government to arrange you a bigger salary and interest free loans? And would you like Hungarians to lose money due to Brussel´s economic isolation?”. And the response rate will be as before, hardly reaching 30 % of voters as people laugh at these questions knowing the whole National Consultation is just a show, an expensive one though.
Norbert thanks for that comment. I actually worked as a public opinion research analyst for a major Canadian polling research firm way back in the 80s. To avoid bias we even rotated the order of multiple answer choices as we polled Canadians. I have been gagging on my breakfast for years as I read the biased leading questions on these sham Fidesz referenda. I’d love to see the following question: “Given Fidesz economic failure and corrupt business deals with Russia which would you vote for? (A) A cleanup of corruption by a new Tisza government or (B) a continuation of the Fat Man’s Fidesz corrupt government.