"We reject any form of migrant quotas," Gergely Gulyas, minister heading the Prime Minister's Office, said in response to a question regarding proposals by Brussels at the government's weekly press briefing on Thursday. The minister said it is also a political commitment for Hungary, since – unlike other EU member states – the Hungarian government has asked the people whether they want migration, a relocation mechanism and the admission of migrants.
"Three million and four hundred thousand people have clearly stated that they do not want Hungary to become an immigrant country in any form,"
Gergely Gulyas recalled, emphasizing that this is a command to be obeyed by the government under all circumstances.
Left supports migrant quotas
As is known, at the end of a marathon-length meeting held recently, EU interior ministers decided on the mandatory resettlement of migrants between member states, and countries refusing to take in migrants would face punishment from Brussels – a financial penalty of 222 thousand euros will be imposed per every non-admitted migrant.
The proposal on the mandatory distribution of migrants in the European Parliament was supported by Hungarian left-wing MEPs, namely Attila Ara-Kovacs, Katalin Cseh, Klara Dobrev, Anna Donath, Marton Gyongyosi, Csaba Molnar, Sandor Ronai and Istvan Ujhelyi.
The so-called "mandatory solidarity" mechanism is one of the new elements of the legislative package, which would give member states three options for dealing with asylum seekers flowing into the EU: taking in a certain number of refugees, financing the return of rejected asylum seekers to their country of origin or funding so-called operational measures (such as infrastructure, border protection, etc.). Financing the return of rejected asylum seekers is the most controversial issue. Several member states, including Poland, Hungary, Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, are unhappy with the financial implications, arguing that the amount charged per person is clearly excessive.
