Prime Minister Viktor Orbán held an international press conference on Thursday in Brussels, where he travelled to participate on a two-day European Council meeting. He emphasised that Hungary is open to discussion regarding the Fourth Amendment, adding that transparency and debate form the basis of European culture.

Regarding international criticism surrounding the Fourth Amendment to the Fundamental Law, the Prime Minister pointed out that no concrete problem has been raised so far, only general concerns. As soon as any points are raised, there are European institutions and procedures within the framework of which the Hungarian Government will be open to discussion, he added. Prime Minister Orbán emphasised that Hungary has so far always accepted the outcome of all European procedures, which required the country to make changes in only one case, the retirement of judges, which the Hungarian Government duly conformed to. Commenting on the request from the Council of Europe to postpone the vote, the Prime Minister highlighted that while the Amendment was before Parliament for more than a month, the Hungarian Government started receiving criticism only a few days before the vote. The call from the Council to postpone came only a day before the final vote, he added.

Talking about the Constitutional Court’s powers, Prime Minister Orbán emphasised that the Court continues to have every opportunity to decide whether or not a law complies with the Fundamental Law. The Parliament did not pass any provisions curtailing the Court’s right to interpret, annul or reinforce legislation, he added. It is a common practice in other European countries as well, he pointed out, that the Court does not have the right to examine the content of the Constitution, since its task is to evaluate the contents of other statute laws and decide whether or not they comply with the Constitution.

The Hungarian Prime Minister also touched upon the country’s reforms, stating that they have been a great success. In 2008, Hungary was the first country in Europe to collapse, he pointed out, but now in contrast, the deficit is stable at under 3%, foreign trade and balance figures are good, inflation is down, employment numbers are improving and state debt has been reduced by 4-5%. The only difficulty is economic growth, he added, emphasising that experts agree, growth will being in 2013 or in 2014. However, the European crisis continues to have a negative effect on Hungary, the Prime Minister pointed out, which weakens the efficacy of these positive tendencies.

(Prime Minister's Office)