Following his visit to Székesfehérvár as part of the Modern Cities Programme, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told Fehérvár Television on Tuesday that the Government firmly believes that the road to even the smallest settlement leads through a city.
Hungary has recorded significant achievements since 2010 and data confirm that the Hungarian economic model has been successful, Minister for Economic Regulation Béla Glattfelder said at the conference entitled “A European success story: economic growth without austerity – the Hungarian model” held in the building of the European Parliament.
The Government is planning to create a support programme for large corporations which will provide an incentive for them to embark on further developments, Nándor Csepreghy, Deputy State Secretary for Development Policy Communication at the Prime Minister’s Office told MTI, the Hungarian News Agency on Tuesday.
Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga received in his office European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs Elżbieta Bieńkowska. The politician, who visited Budapest for the first time as Commissioner, discussed with Minister Varga challenges that the European industrial and SME sectors are facing.
After signing a cooperation agreement as a part of the Modern Cities Programme with the Mayor of Székesfehérvár András Cser-Palkovics on Tuesday, the Prime Minister said that developments aimed at improving the quality of life are to begin in Székesfehérvár: the city centre will be expanded, a concert hall and a multifunctional sports and events centre will be built, and a housing programme will be launched.
The Prime Minister’s Office has already fulfilled its payment obligations due by the end of May, as since the beginning of the year it has transferred HUF 725 billion of EU and state funds to successful tenderers. Taking into consideration the fact that 2015 is the last year that Hungary is able to use funds made available in the 2007–2013 programming period, it is important to absorb all the funding available for the country.
Hungary has joined the league of the fastest growing EU economies, as the country’s GDP reached the pre-crisis level, while the number of people in employment and the volume of investments have also risen, Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga said at the opening of a new production facility of Urbán&Urbán Ltd in Rétság, Northern Hungary.
In the opinion of Fitch Ratings, Government efforts aimed at reducing general government debt and keeping the economy on a sustainable growth path have been bearing fruits. As a confirmation of positive economic processes, in its upbeat press release, the rating agency upgraded Hungary’s rating outlook from negative to positive and thus, the country is only one notch away from investment grade category. Several factors have triggered the revision.
On the public television channel M1, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán described the issue of visa-free travel to the EU as the most important question at the Eastern Partnership Summit in Riga; this is still unresolved, however, he said.
We may expect the conclusion of agreements in the next two weeks which will enable the First National Public Utility Service Provider to also start supplying electricity, in addition to gas, in the second half of the year, and consultations have likewise begun regarding district heating services, János Lázár, the Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office announced at the press conference Government Info 9, which he held jointly with Secretary of State for Government Communications András Giró-Szász.