The goal of the government is not to punish; however, disease control regulations must be strictly observed, Government Spokesperson Alexandra Szentkirályi said on Kossuth Radio’s programme ‘Good morning, Hungary’ on Monday.

The Government Spokesperson stressed that compared with the situation in the spring, this time the country will not be put into lockdown again – people also agreed with this on the basis of the results of the national consultation – but the relevant rules and regulations must be strictly observed.

She mentioned among these provisions that it is compulsory to wear face masks in shops and on public transport, and there is a visiting ban in effect in hospitals and social institutions.

The consultation also showed that people would not like to see their jobs jeopardised, and neither would they like schools to close. Therefore, the emergence of infections in educational institutions will be handled in a targeted manner, and as part of this, from 1 October students will only be allowed to enter schools once their body temperature has been checked, she said.

Ms. Szentkirályi drew attention to the fact that the fight against the epidemic has already cost the state thousands of billions of forints, but thanks to this the virus could not cause as much devastation here as elsewhere. She recalled that in Hungary in July unemployment stood at 4.7 per cent, while in the European Union the average unemployment rate was 7.7 per cent.

In addition to the measures implemented to date, the government is working on the introduction of further measures for the protection of the economy which will serve to protect further jobs and to create new ones, she pointed out.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)