On Friday, many people violated the rules related to compulsory home quarantine, a staff member of the duty centre of the Operational Group responsible for the containment of the coronavirus epidemic said at an online press conference held on Saturday.

Róbert Kiss said on 1 May there were 59 quarantine-related infringements, with more than half of them in Bács-Kiskun County. He mentioned as an example that at a Vaskút farm, foreign guest workers violated the rules in groups.

According to the agreement of the Slovak and Hungarian Interior Ministers, from Monday there will be a change in border traffic controls, he announced. At Tornanádaska, vehicles with a maximum permitted gross weight of not more than 3.5 tonnes will be allowed to cross the border between 6.00 a.m. and 6.00 p.m. At the Bánréve border crossing point, lorries coming from the V4 countries will also be allowed in from Monday, while at Vámosszabadi there will be joint Hungarian-Slovak border controls.

He also said, based on Saturday border traffic forecasts, significant delays could be expected on the exit side at Nagylak.

He highlighted that the rules related to the restrictions on movement in effect for more than a month are usually violated more frequently during the weekend. On Friday, the police took action in 1,730 instances, resulting in 844 cautions, 487 onsite fines and 399 prosecutions.

He added that since 28 March the police had taken action in 42,393 instances due to various violations.

On Friday, another seven planes brought more than 51 tonnes of individual protective supplies to Hungary. The authorities are currently taking stock of and putting into storage the consignments which include surgical face masks and protective gowns, he said.

Mr Kiss further reported that on Friday another 1,145 compulsory home quarantine orders had been issued; as a result, 10,754 such orders are in effect.

In answer to a question, he repeated that persons over the age of 65 are only allowed to visit the stores listed in the government decree on containment measures between 9.00 a.m. and 12.00 p.m. They are allowed to visit shops that are not specifically mentioned on the list at any time. At the same time, they are asking those falling into the most at-risk age group to only leave their homes when absolutely necessary.

In answer to another question, he said, according to the relevant government decree, it is possible to hold sports training sessions even if a former legal rule provides otherwise.

Mr Kiss pointed out in response to an enquiry that those cross-border commuters are exempted from compulsory home quarantine who travel to a neighbouring country for work or to attend school. If a person wishes to travel to a neighbouring country for medical treatment, they may be granted exemption from compulsory home quarantine if they submit an application for exemption to the policing deputy of the national police chief, he added.

In answer to a question regarding the rules that apply to persons with permanent residence in Budapest or in Pest County who travel to the countryside in light of the rules that will change from Monday, he said those living in Budapest and Pest County are still only allowed to leave their homes for essential reasons. Anyone violating this rule commits a breach of the law.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)