The "clear goal" of next year's budget is to reduce overheads and strengthen national defense; the government prepared a draft law that protects the achievements so far, ensures the safety of Hungarian families and keeps the economy on a growth path - said the Minister of Finance Mihály Varga at a press conference in Budapest. The Minister of Finance then handed over the 2023 budget bill to László Kövér, the Speaker of the Parliament.

Mihály Varga emphasized: the bill includes economic growth of 4.1 percent, a deficit target of 3.5 percent, a national debt ratio that will decrease to 73.8 percent by the end of next year, and inflation of 5.2 percent.

The 2023 budget submitted by the government is the budget for overhead defense and national defense. As it has promised, the Government of Hungary will protect jobs, pensions, families and utility cuts even in a protracted war situation. The resources for this are provided by the 2023 budget. In the following year, the 13th monthly pension will remain, family allowances will continue and pensions will continue to rise in line with inflation. Due to the Russo-Ukrainian war and Brussels' energy and sanctions policy, the most important task now is to preserve the peace and security of Hungary, as well as to ensure the country's energy supply and protect utility reduction. The 2023 budget was planned by the government based on these two priorities, it includes the resources needed for the National Defense Fund and the General Defense Fund, as well as the resources needed for the development of the Hungarian economy and the protection of family allowances and pensions - this is the justification of the budget.

The government took into account the impact of the war, sanctions, high energy prices, inflation, the slowdown of the European economy, the uncertainty of the global economic environment, he noted, pointing out that the environment when preparing the budget has never been as unpredictable as it is now.
He drew attention to the fact that

TWO NEW FUNDS HAVE APPEARED IN THE STRUCTURE OF THE DRAFT LAW: THE REGISTER DEFENSE FUND IS 670 BILLION HUF, THE HOMELAND DEFENSE FUND IS 842 BILLION HUF. TWO NEW FOUNDATIONS ARE PRESENT IN THE STRUCTURE OF THE DRAFT LAW

The first fund allows people not to pay the costs of war in the new world economic environment, he said. The national defense fund ensures that the government's commitment to NATO to increase national defense spending will be achieved sooner, by the end of 2023, he added.

The two new funds are financed by taxes collected from sectors that have achieved extra profit in the past period.

Almost all areas can be enriched from more sources in 2023 compared to this year: the government will spend HUF 730 billion more on pensions, HUF 200 billion on education, and HUF 100 billion on health care, he explained. Proportionately, the country spends the most on supporting families within the European Union; next year, the scope of the area will exceed HUF 3,200 billion, which is HUF 450 billion higher than this year, he added.

Origo's full article can be read here.

Photo: Zoltán Máthé