The First Day of the Autumn Session of Parliament

(MTI) – The Fidesz-led government’s economic achievements include tax cuts, employment at a 20-year high, a jobless rate below 8 percent, investments up by a fifth in April-June and Hungarian industrial output at a three-year peak, the prime minister told lawmakers in his opening speech of the first day of the autumn session of parliament on Monday.

By the end of this government’s cycle, Hungary can realistically expect to produce the highest industrial output as a ratio of GDP in Europe, Viktor Orban said.

The bank settlements law for compensating borrowers whose contracts were unilaterally changed by banks will focus on the ideals of fairness, equitableness and honour, he said, noting the government had accepted the decision of the Kuria, the supreme court, declaring unilateral changes by banks an unfair practice.

Orban said there is a need to make banks compensate clients in the interest of “the public good”. Banks’ settlements are all about giving “everyone their fair dues,” he said. This can be achieved only by working together, he said. Hungary is now strong enough to enact and enforce the necessary decisions, he added. “By working together, everything is possible,” he said, asking for the support of all lawmakers, irrespective of party colours.

He said there are already “rustles from Brussels,” and banks in themselves are “powerful, brave and cunning,” Orban said, adding the government must be prepared.

The government has been able to make a change in connection with two stressful aspects of everyday life: high utility bills and high repayments on forex loans, the prime minister said. The utility bill cuts administered had a positive impact on the economy, too, Orban said, adding that the scheme was “the essence of our policies” and would continue with a 3.3 percent reduction in district heating prices in October.

Commenting on the partnership agreement Hungary recently signed with the European Commission, he said the document opens “a new era” in Hungary-EU relations, noting that sometimes conflicts are necessary but an agreement without delay is in order when it is in the country’s interests.

Antal Rogan, head of the parliamentary group of the ruling Fidesz party, noted bank settlements involved not only foreign currency borrowers but also forint-denominated ones. “They, too, have a right to fair treatment and must be served justice” he said.