Tamás Schanda, the parliamentary and strategic state secretary of the Ministry of Innovation and Technology, said that because of the runaway energy prices on the world market and the coronavirus epidemic, you have to pay more for gasoline and food all over Europe. Asked by Vasárnap.hu, he outlined how the food price freeze helps the daily life of Hungarians.

All companies operating in Hungary must comply with the current Hungarian legislation. Even large chains, whether nationally or foreign-owned, are obliged to adapt to domestic regulations. Thanks to the resources at their disposal, this should not be a challenge for them in practice. Even before the entry into force of the rules, we consulted with industry associations and professional organizations on the appropriate application of the law on several occasions. Negotiations on the direction of official inspections have been ongoing and constructive ever since. We also prepared a guide for traders on expectations, which has already been downloaded about two thousand times. The consumer protection staff of the government offices will demand compliance with the food price cap during test purchases and on-site inspections in all parts of the country for three months from February 1st. Colleagues visit everywhere from convenience stores to markets to hypermarkets, and they also check online shops that offer the relevant range of products.

Last week, only 17 stores had problems, ten stores failed in pricing, three in stocking, and another four failed in providing information. However, it is promising that most of the enterprises immediately repaired or replaced the deficiencies as a result of the inspection. Official proceedings will be initiated against the violators, and soon we will be able to announce the first fines imposed.

If customers find that a store does not apply an official price, or if they have a problem with the quantity or the information, they should report it to the consumer protection authority operating in the government offices of their place of residence - capital city or county. The authority investigates such reports and initiates ex officio proceedings based on them. You can do this even from home by clicking on the "Complaint" banner on the website www.fogyasztovedelem.kormany.hu

Runaway energy prices and inflation are affecting the whole of Europe, yet we do not know of a similar example in the European Union, for example, Serbia, which is not a member state, has introduced similar regulations.

Let's not forget, however, that the Hungarian government has already protected and is protecting the Hungarian people with various interventions. Thanks to the utility reduction launched in 2013, Hungarian families still pay one of the lowest prices for gas and electricity. As a result of the gasoline price cap, we can get fuel cheaper than almost everyone else, and with the interest cap, we have prevented the increase in burdens associated with loan repayments. We protect people, we pay extra attention to families with children and the elderly.

In the Gyurcsány–Bajnai era, on the other hand, the price of electricity and gas increased two to three times. The left has continuously attacked all the mentioned measures, step by step it is getting involved in our economic policy based on tax reduction, family support and investment promotion. Hungary is moving forward, not backward, and just as utility reduction has become an example to be followed, we can also have followers in the food price freeze.

Source: vasarnap.hu 

Featured image: origo.hu