A key element of the wellbeing of people is the efficient organization of public transport. The advantage which Hungary enjoys is that it has a dense transport network in a European comparison.
The sixth session of the Hungarian-Russian Intergovernmental Committee for Economic Cooperation was concluded by the signature of a protocol and a joint declaration of modernisation and partnership on 18 March 2011 in Moscow. The documents were signed by Hungarian Minister of National Development Tamás Fellegi and Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov. Cooperation opportunities in the field of energy, agriculture, finances and transport were discussed during the talks.
Because of the policy of the past eight years which had been based on overspending, high budget deficits and accumulating public debt, the financial crisis which erupted in autumn 2008 pushed the country into such a situation that we could avoid bankruptcy only by the help of international credits.
According to the analysis of the Ministry for National Economy, it is not in the interest of Hungary to join the Competitiveness Pact as Hungary is already taking all the necessary steps outlined in the EU’s structural pact. Furthermore, the Széll Kálmán Plan contains even more ambitious measures while sustaining the independence of the tax system.
On 16 March 2011, with a significant majority the Hungarian National Assembly Parliament adopted the draft act No. T/1941 and the related amending motions submitted by the Ministry of National Development. The act approved by the MPs, among others, transposes a significant part of the legislation of the so-called 3rd energy package of the European Union into Hungarian law.
It was the first time that the Education, Youth, Culture and Sports Council held a meeting in Brussels during the Hungarian EU Presidency. The meeting focused on the role of education in achieving the objectives set by the community for the period till 2020. Said meeting was presided over by Rózsa Hoffman, state secretary responsible for education of the Ministry of National Resources of Hungary.
On 15 February Dr. Miklós Szócska, state secretary responsible for health policy, held a meeting for the leading officers of health institutions and background institutions financed by the state. One of the focuses of the discussion was the issue of the announcement of jobs published in the Health Gazette last Friday.
On the occasion of the World Marriage Day, Miklós Soltész, state secretary responsible for social, family and youth affairs of the Ministry of National Resources, delivered, during a ceremony, the first commemorative plaquette “Together” to a young couple just married. The ceremonial event was also attended by Balázs Bús, mayor of Óbuda.
Géza Szőcs, state secretary responsible for culture, visited Berlin at the weekend, where he attended several meetings during the period of the film festival. On Sunday, 13 February, he carried on discussions with his German colleague, Bernd Neumann, federal minister of culture, on strengthening the Hungarian-German cultural relations, with special regard to movies and digitalization.
On 9 February 2011 the state secretary responsible for sports of the Ministry of National Resources informed civil organizations of the sports policy efforts of the Hungarian Presidency.
More than six hundred young people visited the Ministry of Public Administration and Justice on Saturday, on the occasion of the first ever ReGeneráció Public Administration Open Day, in which participants were able to gain an insider’s view of the work of the Ministry.
‘We began with crisis communication, and continued in that mode until a few weeks ago’ – this is how Zoltán Kovács characterised the work so far of the Office of the Minister of State for Government Communication.
Minister of Defence Csaba Hende travelled to Warsaw on March 17 and delivered a speech at the 4th Euro-Atlantic Security Forum.
The European Parliament would like to have a greener and more “Central-European” Danube-strategy. This was approved on Thursday at the Strassbourg plenary session. The report supports the proposals of the European committee and that of the Member States’. This strategy does not have its own budget but it has to use the Union’s resources and coordinate it with the member states.
The troops of the MFO (Multinational Force and Observers) and the FMPU (Force Military Police Unit) deployed in Sinai have been rotated recently.
The Government’s intention is to prevent cases similar to the tragedy that happened at the “West Balkán” club in January, declared András Tállai, the State Secretary for the Local Governments Matters, at the press conference held on Friday together with the Government’s Spokeswomen Anna Nagy on introducing details from the Government’s Decree on “A safer operation of public places, clubs, and discos.”
An international seminar was held in Budapest on “Strengthening the cooperation in combating human trafficking in South-eastern Europe” on 17-18 March 2011. Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis, the Ambassador of the United States in Budapest, Peter Widermann, the Director General of ICMPD, and Maria Grazia Giammarinaro the special representative of OSCI held a press conference in the Ministry of Interior on the results of the seminar.
The Council of Agricultural Ministers chaired by Mr. Sándor Fazekas approved the conclusions of the Hungarian Presidency concerning the future of the Common Agrarian Policy (CAP) by a majority of two thirds.
The ninth rotation of HDF PRT (Hungarian Defence Forces, Provincial Reconstruction Team) completed its duty and handed over authority to the tenth rotation on March 4.
On 14 March, 2011 Dr Tamás Fellegi, Minister of National Development, also in charge of climate change policy, chaired the climate change policy agenda items at the European Council’s environment policy meeting in Brussels.
Speech by Minister of State Zsolt Németh
A unilateral political agreement was made in Brussels concerning the modification of directives on electric and electronic waste. It all took place during the meeting of Ministers of Environmental Protection while Mr. Sándor Fazekas was presiding. Public Announcement.
Ministry of Defence proposed a site to host the third NATO 3D radar in the south of Hungary, near the village of Medina.
On 8 March 2011, Deputy State Secretary for Energy Pál Kovács, representing the Ministry of National Development, conducted negotiations with the delegation of the French company AREVA headed by Deputy Chairman Jean-Hugues Perreard. During the Budapest meeting the parties overviewed the most important technical conditions and financing opportunities that may be indispensable for the future extension of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant.
Last July the Hungarian Republic confirmed its intention to redeploy the Hungarian KFOR contingent from Peč to Pristine, Kosovo. From March 2011 on the next rotation of the Hungarian contingent will be under the direct control of KFOR Commander. The Hungarian servicemen will be redeployed at Camp Slim Lines in Pristine led by Portuguese troops.
Beekeepers have begun collecting signatures and have written a letter to the Minister of Agriculture urging him to convince the European Council to raise the upper limit for contamination found in honey.
The letter was signed by 2000 people. Public announcement
The member states of the European Union should act together to create sustainable pensions systems, Miklós Réthely, said, in an interview to eu2011.hu. The Minister for National Resources talked about the challenges posed by ageing European society; and the special social policy priorities of the presidency, before the meeting of the Employment, Social Policy, Health, and Consumer Affairs Council, on 7 March.
Upon the advice of the Minister of Defence appointments have been presented by the President of the Hungarian Republic, Pál Schmitt at the Sándor Palace.
In order to inform the consumers authentically the Minister of Rural Development wants to regulate the concept of Hungarian products. Public announcement.
During the meeting Juraj Chmiel, Czech deputy minister of agriculture and György Czerván, director of agricultural economy reviewed the most important issues about CAP’s future.