It is not for me to speak for the Purples [supporters of Újpest Football Club], but let us not forget those who add doubts about coming to this stadium. We salute them too! Welcome also to those who are not Fradistas [supporters of Ferencváros Football Club] – while at the same time, of course, congratulating Ferencváros on another glorious championship title.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
This is a prestigious occasion, which I have the rare privilege of participating in. So, as always, we do not consider the signing of this agreement to be a formality, but a serious matter. And since we regard it as a serious matter, we would like to show our respect for our partners by not simply signing the agreement, not simply by making diplomatic remarks on behalf of the Government as a whole, but by outlining some of the basic theoretical and practical economic considerations that underpin and form the basis for the Government’s economic policy – considerations which have led us to this agreement. I will do this so that you can see the stability and predictability inherent in this agreement. Moreover, as this is not the first time that I have stood here before you in the minutes before signing an agreement, I will rely on my previous experience of this being a circle in which it is possible to speak frankly, to speak in a way that one should perhaps speak to entrepreneurs: clearly and straightforwardly.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Honourable Assembly, Dear President,
We are gathered here to sign this agreement between the Government and the Chamber. Let us remind ourselves that we have been working together for fifteen years. We think of all those who are here, those who are not here, and those who can no longer be here. On behalf of the Government, I would like to thank them for the agreements concluded over the past fifteen years, and for the implementation of those agreements. Thank you very much.
The HCCI is a distinguished partner for the Government. There are many organisations that seek to represent the interests of businesses, and we express our respect to them; but at the same time we acknowledge that the MKIK is the key strategic partner for the Hungarian government. So what we think about businesses and businesspeople is reflected in our cooperation with the HCCI: this is the basis and the origin of our cooperation. In this context, I probably do not need to speak at length about the fact that Hungary’s future depends not solely on politics and parties – although, of course, it does depend on them also – but primarily on performance and partnership. We have agreed with President Elek Nagy that a strong economy is based on a strong entrepreneurial class. There can be no successful management, no successful economic policy, without a strong entrepreneurial class. And we have also agreed with President Elek Nagy that it is the Government’s job to help businesses succeed. I recall that in our previous agreement in 2022 we set clear targets. Let me recite them: to make the economy more competitive; to reduce taxes on employment; to support digitalisation; and to expand opportunities for Hungarian-owned small and medium-sized enterprises. This is what we set out in the previous agreement and, as we have heard from the President, back then we also laid down a number of specific points. Three years later we stand here today, and we can say – with due modesty, but with pride – that we have delivered what we set out to do. You also know what a good feeling that is. We have introduced personal income tax exemption for people under 25. Over the last three years we have reduced social security contributions. We have made the process of starting a business simpler and cheaper – although on that we still have some way to go. At your request, we have redesigned dual training to make skilled labour more accessible to Hungarian firms. We have protected the interest subsidy system and extended the fund for reductions in energy bills to small and medium-sized enterprises. Overall, more than 40,000 young people have started businesses with the support of our start-up scheme. We made an agreement, we kept to it, and we delivered.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
So much for the past. As for the future, we are facing new choices – not only in political terms, which everyone knows about and is perhaps already talking about, but also in economic terms. As I see it, Hungary has two options, two paths. One is the path of tax increases. One should not bury one’s head in the sand: such a policy – a policy of tax increases – has come to the fore as we approach the election. If you listen to the debates in Parliament, if you listen to the political speeches, you will realise that now there are ideas that – as an alternative to the policy of the current government – are based on tax increases. The Opposition are not mincing their words: they want to introduce new taxes. And this is what we know from them: a wealth tax and real estate tax. They would increase personal income tax and push for new EU green taxes. We also know that Brussels and many countries in Europe are governed by left-wing parties. We know their economic policy: they do not really believe in work, they do not believe in performance – they always believe in centrally directed redistribution. We also know what this means in practice. Sadly, we are no longer children: we have all grown up and lived through everything that happened before 2010 – it is just that we do not remember it or recall it often enough. But I will try to do that. Let us recall that before 2010 the middle class always got the short end of the stick. There was an attempt to introduce a property tax on detached houses – and we were only able to avert it with the help of the Constitutional Court. They tried to introduce a wealth tax on small businesses, and income tax for employees was much higher. Let us not forget that before 2010 the average income – not those of the rich, but the average income – was taxed at a rate of over 30 per cent.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The other option, the other path that lies ahead of you – and ahead of Hungary – is what we call the path of national economic policy. This is a policy which favours performance. When it comes to the economy, we are not interested in ideology: we make our decisions solely on the basis of common sense. This is why we have cut taxes. We have chosen the path of tax cuts because we believed – and I think we have been proven right – that if the burdens on businesses are reduced there will be more jobs, there will be higher wages, there will be more exports, and there will be a stronger country. Since 2010 we have halved employee contributions, we have halved personal income tax, and we have halved corporate tax. Thanks to the restructuring of the tax system, at least this is my belief, in Hungary there are now one million more people in work. The average wage has tripled, something we do not think about today, the minimum wage has quadrupled, and Hungary’s economic performance has grown by multiples.
Honourable Assembly of Delegates,
We all know that left-wing economic policy is not about enterprise, it is not about success: it is fundamentally about envy, more about taxing the middle class, more about restraining output, more about ideology-based redistribution – and ultimately, I believe, it is about the inability to compete. We have to face up to the facts, even if they are unpleasant. Today this is the mindset, and today this is the Left that is running Brussels. I am not just talking about Hungary: I am talking about Europe. The fact that the left is running Brussels is the reason that it is so bureaucratic, so opaque, and actually – as you can all see – anti-business. In Brussels there are plans on the table that, on the pretext of supporting Ukraine, set out expectations for Hungary that would devastate our country economically. They constantly demand that we raise taxes on employment, they demand that we introduce new green taxes, and they constantly push us to take out joint EU loans and cripple our businesses with regulation. This is how it is! You know my position: we will not do any of that. The Hungarian government is not an executive branch of Brussels. We are convinced that the Hungarian economy must be managed in Hungary’s economic interests. We would rather argue, sometimes veto, then negotiate and finally reach an agreement – as we have done with EU funds.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear President Elek Nagy,
Unfortunately the Government’s economic policy is not without its flaws, of course – no one would dare say that; but for fifteen years it has been stable, predictable and steady. You know our principles well. I will reiterate them briefly. Our economic policy is based on five clear statements. These statements, these principles, these views, are tried and tested in practice; they come from our experience, and they have been consolidated in our governance. And it is on the foundation of these considerations that we have negotiated this agreement with you, and this is why I am signing it.
Our first point is that in Hungary the economy is based not on welfare, but on work. We do not believe that the country can be put back on its feet by means of welfare benefits. I believe that only respect for work and respect for performance can drive the economy forward.
Our second view follows from the first: those who work should be supported, and never penalised. A government that puts the burden on its labour force is actually governing in opposition to the future of the country. We are therefore on the side of working people – whether they are business owners or their employees.
Our third point is that the key to competitiveness is tax cuts. Many people in Brussels think that subsidies can buy competitiveness. We believe – and I know – that this is not the case. The best form of subsidy is to let businesses and people work, and not to take away the value that they create.
I am convinced that wherever there is a left-wing government, sooner or later – more likely sooner, in my opinion – there will be economic decline. I think that everyone in Hungary knows this. I therefore believe – and in this I hope I am not deceiving myself – that there are left-leaning business owners in Hungary, but since in Hungary we do not govern the economy on ideological grounds, left-leaning business owners can at least support our economic policy. If there is performance, even from those on the Left, then they will not be – and they cannot be – excluded from anything: they are also part of the national economy.
And finally, my fifth principle is that we will achieve our economic goals this year. I will continue where President Elek Nagy left off. We will not make excuses, we will not complain, we will not point fingers, we will not complain about the war or the sanctions. It is what it is. But, even in these circumstances, the goals we have set ourselves must be achieved. This year the most important government objective we have undertaken to achieve is to deliver Europe’s biggest programme of tax cuts for families. And I guarantee that we shall do it – whatever happens. We are talking about a programme of 4 trillion forints.
Dear Business Owners,
Finally, I must talk about an essential element of our economic policy, which is the child we share with you. In today’s world it does not sound so strange – it is the Széchenyi Card. With the Széchenyi Card we are giving businesses 320 billion forints. And in the Sándor Demján Programme we are mobilising hundreds of billions of forints to stimulate the economy.
President, Ladies and Gentlemen,
For my part, I see only one serious risk that could destabilise the future of the Hungarian economy: Ukraine’s accession to the European Union – if that is forced down our throats. You are obviously familiar with the international and domestic political debates on this issue. I very much hope that you are aware of the threat posed to your businesses and to the Hungarian economy in general by Ukraine’s EU membership. During the three years of the Russo–Ukrainian war, Ladies and Gentlemen, the Hungarian economy has lost more than 20 billion euros. This is how much more there would be in the Hungarian economy today if there had been no war. This is why the success of the US president’s peace efforts is in our vital interest – no matter what we think of America or the US administration. It is in our vital interest not to fuel the war with words, with soldiers or with weapons. Put another way, it is easy to see that for us peace is in our fundamental interest. It must also be seen that Brussels’ grand plan is to keep Ukraine alive, to maintain the Ukrainian army; we are talking about maintaining a million-strong Ukrainian army with EU money, and therefore to insist on forcibly accelerating Ukraine’s EU accession. The Brussels elites either do not see or do not want to see that this will bring down the European economy – and I think that Hungary would be crippled by that. We cannot – and we shall not – take on the financial burden of sending our EU funds to Ukraine. And we shall not let in the Ukrainian mafia. We shall not let in the risk of Ukrainian GMO food, nor shall we let in the collapse of the Hungarian social welfare system that Ukraine’s membership of the EU would involve, even in the short term. A consultative vote is currently underway. I urge you – as Hungarian business owners who are particularly affected by this issue – to tell us what you think, and to take part in this vote.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
President Elek Nagy has presented the content of this agreement. I agree with his words of appreciation. We have reached an agreement that meets all his requests. I do not promise that this will always be the case, but it is certainly true for this agreement. What did the President ask for? He said that the agreement should include a reduction in red tape, it should include a reduction in taxes, and it should include tax simplification. We have done that work. In fact, we have not only done it on paper. Here I would also cite the Sándor Demján Programme as a good example. It is a speedy and simple programme, for which 1,885 businesses have submitted applications. You know what I am talking about: the entrepreneur brings in one forint and we add one forint. Like the old Széchenyi Plan – I can see that there are some of you who remember our first government between 1998 and 2000, when the Széchenyi Plan was launched. So back to the present. Applications have been submitted by 1,885 companies. They have asked for a total of 137 billion forints, with the promise that they will add this much – or at least this much. Unfortunately, the original funding available would have allowed for the support of only 450 applications; therefore at its most recent meeting – the day before yesterday – the Government decided to add a further 82 billion forints to the original 48 billion, bringing the total budget for this Sándor Demján Programme to 130 billion forints. A simple and speedy programme – just as the President asked for.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In conclusion, I must say that I am convinced that the economic policy we are pursuing, the Government’s plans, are supported by the majority in the country: to stay out of the war; to stop migration and support families; to support small and medium-sized enterprises. We have been able to do this before, and we will be able to do it again. We will keep people’s confidence, and we will implement the agreement we are about to sign – not only in 2025, but also in 2026 and beyond.
Thank you for your kind attention.