PM Orban: The council chamber was a scene of war on migration

Unconventionally, the prime minister spoke to public radio from Brussels.

Last night, the council chamber was a scene of war on migration, and the budget will be discussed this morning,

– PM Orban said from Brussels, adding that now everyone is preparing for this debate.

He stressed that when the seven-year budget was adopted, it was agreed that it would not be amended. However, this has now happened. He said the Commission had announced that it had run out of money and was asking member states to pay in additional billions of euros: €50 billion for Ukraine. But what has the 70 billion so far been enough for? Who is in charge of monitoring this? - Prime Minister Orban asked.

A jack-knife opens in the leaders' pockets 

Mr Orban said that Hungarians and Poles had not seen a penny of the loans taken out by member states, with a view to restarting the economy after the coronavirus-induced tsunami, but that the interest rates on these loans had risen because of the global economic situation. The EU is now asking the member states for more money to be able to pay these back. They are also asking for money to give Brussels bureaucrats a pay rise. Mr Orban opined that

it was absurd to the point that it opened a jack-knife in the pockets of almost every leader of EU member states. 

PM Orban said that a long battle was expected to start, during which Brussels will come up with a new proposal to try and persuade the national leaders, and buy their votes.  "However, we will not give money for a pay rise so long as they push for the abolition of our public utility bill reduction scheme, we will not give Ukraine any more money until the existing funds have been accounted for, and we will not give money towards covering the interest rates of a loan of which we have not seen a single penny of," Mr Orban made clear, and then pointed to the importance of reaching a peace agreement as soon as possible. 

There are two schools

He said that there are two schools of thought on the war in Ukraine: "The majority says that what we have done so far is good. That is, the Ukrainian soldiers are fighting, we are giving them weapons. But I say that the result is negative, Russia has not been defeated. A normal person would say that it is not worth continuing. We say that all means must be used to achieve a ceasefire and peace negotiations," he said. He also said, "We are at the limits of our capacity, there is no money in the EU budget. Ukraine has the money of the Hungarians and the Poles. European citizens are rebellious for a good reason. Huge sums are exiting the EU, in an uncontrolled manner. And the loans taken out are also being used for the wrong purposes," the prime minister said. 

It was a freedom fight, not a mutiny 

PM Orban also touched on a topic that the Brussels-based Politico had described as a "migration mutiny” at yesterday's EU meeting. Well, it was a freedom fight, not a mutiny, Mr Orban said, recalling the earlier accord that proposals on migration could only be adopted with full consensus. Despite this, a proposal on mandatory migrant quotas was recently pushed through the Council of Interior Ministers in a "coup-like manner". "Why make agreements if we do not stick to them?" Hungary’s prime minister asked, adding that

here could be a link between the quota decision and the change of leadership at the helm of the Soros empire.

We showed an example on how to manage migration

PM Orban indicated that 

Hungary is to accept up to 10,000 people and build migrant ghettos, according to the adopted plan. "The decisions taken so far have put an end to the previous situation, which could be described as a state of calm," he added. He said some were still confusing the issues of guest workers and migration, and to them, he usually explains that he has seen the hordes of migrants crossing through Hungary, and they will not become a diligent workforce for German industry. Apart from this, there are some ideological considerations, too, where the Soros empire acts as a mouthpiece, using its influence in the media. "Last year 45 migrant applications were submitted in Hungary, and we showed an example as to how migration should be tackled," the prime minister said.

According to Mr Orban, 

the solution is real simple: we must keep the migrants out of Europe until their applications are evaluated. All it takes is willpower.

 "Hungary has embarked on generous aid missions, for example in Africa, because we need to help where the trouble is, and the main thing is to prevent people from leaving for the European continent," he said.

Hungary will not become a vulnerable country  

Turning to domestic policy issues, Mr Orban emphasized that Hungary has been adversely affected by the rise in energy prices, adding that the country has achieved fantastic efficiency in the use of solar energy. "We will get to the point where Hungary will no longer be a vulnerable country. However, we are not there yet," he said, "so we have to be proactive and help people. Subsequently, the government has pledged to bring inflation down into single digits by year's end, something our recently adopted measures will also help to achieve," Mr Orban said. 

The situation could turn around in the second half of the year, with the rate of wage growth exceeding price hikes. It would be a huge feat if - looking at the whole year - people could maintain the value of their incomes,

he said. According to Mr Orban, the compulsory sales promotions are an important tool, and the scope of discounts that supermarkets must provide has been increased, with fixed-price products also being included in these promotions packages. The prime minister said he hopes that Hungarian families will get through these difficult six to seven months, and that their prospects will start improving again.

 The most important priority is to protect jobs

If there is work, there is everything, Mr Orban contended. Therefore, the most important thing is to protect jobs. If people work, there will be solutions to all problems. The second most important thing is to think about those who are not working. The value of pensions must be preserved and the 13th month pension must also be protected, he said. In addition, the value of family allowances must be preserved. He said changes were needed, because the government-sponsored family home-creation scheme (CSOK) did well in the villages, but the number of applications was dwindling in the cities. Changes were also implemented in the so-called prenatal baby support scheme, which next year will be available to those aged over 30 and expecting a baby. At the same time, Mr Orban underlined that the amounts paid out in the context of both the Village CSOK and the prenatal baby allowance would increase from 2024.

This year will torment us, but in the end we will come out stronger than before,

 PM Orban said in concluding the interview. 

Unconventional interview, from Brussels 

Prime Minister Orban's interview on the "Good Morning, Hungary" program of Hungary's Kossuth Radio's began at 7.30 am, local time, unconventionally, from Brussels.

PM Orban arrived in Brussels for a two-day summit of EU leaders. In a video message posted on Facebook, he said the European Commission had submitted a budget amendment proposal asking member states to make massive additional payments, to the tune of  hundreds of billions of euros. "The question arises: how did this situation come about, and how could they bring the European Union to the brink of bankruptcy?" Mr Orban said.

Cover photo: PM Viktor Orban gives an interview to Hungary's public Kossuth Radio (Photo: Prime Minister's Press Office/Zoltan Fischer)