November 5th, 2008

Minister calls for major reform to municipal government sytem

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Local Government Minister Istvan Gyenesei called for “real, great, structural changes” to Hungary’s municipal government system during parliament’s plenary debate of the 2009 budget bill on Wednesday.

What we need to reduce is not local democracy but local bureaucracy, said Gyenesei, and added that municipal expenses could be reduced through integrating both the offices and activities of local administration.

The minister suggested that the number of local representatives could be reduced by 20 percent as of 2010, and a smaller parliament could be introduced at the same time.

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4 Comments

  1. Dubious says:
    November 7, 2008 at 2:24 pm

    Hey. Wow! This is something I actually think is really sensible, productive and doable.
    Having said that, I don’t think it will happen, but we can always dream…

  2. Farkas Lászlό says:
    November 7, 2008 at 4:03 pm

    Another possibility to look into is privatisiation, a trend in some other countries, especially the US. Many govt and municipal services are outsourced, or the management of same is contracted out to a private firm. This does create a lot of business opportunity, perhaps at the expense or loss of some employment security for govt. workers. I suggest trying something like this on a small, relatively harmless scale, and see how well it works with us. Our business class could always use a boost!

  3. Paul Vero says:
    November 7, 2008 at 6:57 pm

    Having lived in Hungary with many friends in Municipal government it is clear that there is a lot of fat that requires right-sizing. That actually holds true for all levels of government in Hungary. I applaud Istvan Gyenesei’s statements but also know that those government officials will hold strong and lobby to avoid losing anything. Even if not highly paid they cause harm to private industry/consumers through legislation and deals they make amongst their inner group.

  4. mawar says:
    November 8, 2008 at 6:32 am

    “especially the US. Many govt and municipal services are outsourced, or the management of same is contracted out to a private firm.”
    I agree in many aspects on this, and I also know for the fact that there is always harm, and will have to be swallowed up by Hungary/private firm etc…. Of course, it did happen in the US.
    What would constitute a “relatively harmless scale”?