The opposition liberal Free Democrats consider the prime minister’s 12-point economic action-plan a base for further talks but call on the Socialist minority government to take firmer steps to mitigate the effects of the global financial crisis, Party Chairman Gabor Fodor told reporters after a meeting of the party’s economic experts in Budapest on Saturday.
He said the Free Democrats were willing to reconsider their 400-450 billion forint (around 1.7bn euro) tax-cut proposal for next year, but expressed concern that giving up on tax reforms would cause serious problems in the country.
Parliamentary group leader Janos Koka, a former economy minister, called a lasting economic recession the biggest threat the developing global financial crisis might pose to Hungary. He saw it another concern that Hungarian state bonds would be more difficult to sell on international markets.
He said that for ensuring long-term macro-economic growth state spending should be reduced, state administration should be more frugal and the state redistribution system should be revised. He also called for a simpler tax system and reduced taxes and contribution payments in order to alleviate burdens on households and businesses.
The 12-point package Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany put forward on Friday includes cutting the deficit target for the year from the current 4 percent of gross domestic product to 3.4, and for next year from 3.2 percent to 2.9, as well as a full guarantee for all bank deposits, with no ceiling on the amount, and other measures. He also called for rescinding proposed tax cuts to buy down the deficit.
