The prime minister has revealed that in the coming 30 days, the state will reimburse hotels for 80 percent of the bookings registered before November 8.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Facebook that the steps are part of announcing a new round of restrictive measures aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus. Restaurants and leisure facilities will be exempt from paying contributions after their employees for the next 30 days and the government will take over half of their employees’ wage costs. Employers are only eligible for those allowances, however, if they commit to keeping and paying their employees, he said.
Although hospitals are well-equipped with protective gear and ventilators, and “doctors and nurses are working beyond their strength … they are also human, and have their limitations,” PM Orbán said. A vaccine is not expected for weeks yet, he added.
Since the start of the pandemic, Hungary has seen 109,000 infections, and Europe 8 million, PM Orbán said. “We all know it will not be easy. The next weeks will be hard,” he said. “But the vaccine is within reach now, we will have to persevere until then … we will have to take care of the elderly and observe the rules. Let’s take care of each other! If we stand together, we will succeed again.”
Photo credit: Portfolio