In an interview with the magazine of the National Public Service University, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has said that the Government is seeking to ensure that all leaders of state institutions – either at regional or central levels – receive training in state administration and political science.

In an interview published in the latest edition of Bonum Publicum Magazine, the Prime Minister said that the reform of training in state administration and political science will require that public administration officials receiving training not only have specialist knowledge, but are also committed to representing the national interest, to moral conduct and to public service.

“We should aim for a state which is strong, fair and worthy of respect, because in all its dealings it places the public interest ahead of individuals’ interests”, Mr. Orbán stressed.

Speaking about the National Public Service University, the Prime Minister said that its achievements reflect its founder’s intentions. The university was established in 2010 as a long-term solution to the problems of previous decades. “This institution also has a resource which takes us forward: patriotism”, he said. He added that the National Public Service University’s creation has been a significant step forward in the reform of public administration, because it trains specialists who can represent a new generation of the state which the Government has been working to establish ever since it entered office.

In answer to a question, Mr. Orbán said that in 2010 the country had to be pulled back from the brink of bankruptcy, and for years the Government worked to “keep Hungary afloat” without the use of borrowed money. The goal now, however, is no longer merely to provide jobs for people, but to make it more worthwhile to be in employment and to enable everyone to take a step forward.

He mentioned that the Government sees the pay rise for public sector workers as a priority, and this is behind the salary increases for the police and defence forces, teachers and healthcare workers. In relation to the migration crisis, Mr. Orbán observed that there is every indication that Brussels is unable to protect the citizens of Europe, and therefore Hungary must protect itself.

In the Prime Minister’s opinion there is an endless supply of people who could be part of future waves of illegal migration, with hundreds of millions waiting to set out. “We must therefore prepare for the fact that the pressure on our borders will not decrease”, he said, remarking that Hungary is not only protecting itself, but also the southern borders of the European Union at the same time.

He added that, thanks to the Government’s measures, today Hungary is one of the EU’s safest countries: “Here there are no bomb attacks, there is no mass violence and there are no murderers driving trucks into crowds of people; naturally, however, this does not mean that there is no danger of these things happening”.

Mr. Orbán stressed that one of the characteristics of Hungary’s new foreign policy approach is that, in addition to conventional diplomacy, the interests of the national economy are represented, and there is a single yardstick: the Hungarian interest.

Speaking about reductions in bureaucracy, the Prime Minister said that this in itself does not solve anything. “We have changed the underlying assumption: according to our way of thinking, the citizens do not exist for the benefit of the state, but the other way round. The state must serve its citizens, and must at the same time guarantee the security of everyday life”, he said.

Concerning the 2018 general election in Hungary, he said that when one compares the periods before and after 2010, one can see that Hungary today is a better place than it was under the socialist governments, as it now has a secure vision of the future and an ever more prosperous culture. The Hungarian economy is stronger, he added, many more people have jobs, and in the areas which are the most important for the Government – such as the banking and energy sectors and the media – Hungarians are now in the majority, and not foreigners.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister)