Bankrupt capital - the people of Karácsony are preparing for austerity and tax evasion

The capital's financial situation and Budapest's "survival package" were on the agenda at its meeting on Wednesday. The left voted for Christmas austerity. According to Fidesz, the question is where the more than HUF 214 billion saved by István Tarlós went.

The Capital Assembly decided on certain measures of the Budapest "survival program" announced by the city administration. Deputy Mayor Ambrus Kiss noted the measures to be taken in order to stabilize the budget situation of the capital city municipality, maintain the standard of public services, and guarantee the wages of those employed by its companies and institutions.

After more than two hours of discussion, the proposal was accepted by the board with 18 yes votes and 12 abstentions. Representatives of Fidesz-KDNP and independent representative Ákos Szabados were absent from the voting.

The measures include the request for a development loan of 16.6 billion, the initiative to reduce the solidarity contribution, and to pay the state overhead subsidy and the HUF six billion government subsidy promised for the renovation of the Chain Bridge.

 

"The survival package is a political pamphlet disguised as a professional"

In the debate, Gábor Bagdy, the representative of the Fidesz-KDNP in Budapest, stated that the "survival package" is a political pamphlet disguised as a professional.

- What would the mayor think if motorists didn't pay parking fees because they don't feel like it?

- this question was already asked by Attila Ughy, the XVIII. district's former Fidesz mayor addressed the mayor, referring to when Karácsony said last week: Budapest is suing the government and not paying almost 25 billion forints in taxes.

The mayor's statement is wrong because paying taxes applies to everyone in the same way: individuals, businesses and municipalities. Speaking about Budapest's financial situation, Finance Minister Mihály Varga previously pointed out that the financial situation of the capital is threatened by the irresponsible and wasteful management since 2019. He emphasized that

As he wrote: the left-wing city administration used up the reserves despite the fact that

the tax revenues of the capital are higher than ever before, and its taxing power is increasing year by year:

The capital's business tax revenues are expected to exceed HUF 271 billion this year. In addition, the capital will receive an additional HUF 46 billion in support from the budget. Together, the two revenues exceed HUF 317 billion, which is HUF 130 billion more than in 2019. In addition, as the richest settlement in the country, like many other municipalities, Budapest must pay a solidarity contribution to support poorer settlements, a total of HUF 57.8 billion.

Zolán Pokorni, the XII. The Fidesz mayor of the district put it this way: the capital is managing HUF 77 billion extra money from its business tax revenues, more than István Tarlós before.

− emphasized the mayor of Hegyvidék. He added that the left-wing city administration is carrying out a political and verbal exorcism, so in his opinion it is difficult for the government to cooperate with the capital.

Krisztina Baranyi, the mayor of Ferencváros, warned: if the representatives do not vote for the "survival program", then the capital's public transport will stop in August, when the World Athletics Championships will be held in Budapest.

Mayor Gergely Karácsony is preparing for austerity, "covering it up" with the people of Budapest, Zsolt Wintermantel, the head of the Fidesz-KDNP faction in the capital, told reporters on Wednesday, during the Capital Assembly. As he said, the mayor already "went bankrupt" half a year after his election and since then he "pulls out the card again and again" every six months.

„He got involved in this current case because his boss told him to”

- he added, emphasizing that Ferenc Gyurcsány, the president of the Democratic Coalition, recently spoke about his dissatisfaction with the mayor because he does not use his position enough to fight against the government.

According to Zsolt Wintermantel, the mayor is preparing for austerity and wants to take it away from the people of Budapest again, as he previously stopped boat traffic on the Danube, had bins removed, and he also caused the fact that garbage was not taken away from Budapest households.

He added that the measures announced by the mayor foresee austerity and that they do not want to fulfill their tax payment obligations, which, as he said, is "an irresponsible attitude of the city manager". He pointed out: a person in a responsible position cannot encourage breaking the law.

He said: the city administration does not want to pay HUF 25 billion in solidarity tax for settlements with a more difficult fate and in a worse situation, and it also wants to take out a loan, but there can be no talk of meaningful savings measures.

Regarding the fact that the capital saved almost HUF 30 billion in the first quarter by purchasing electricity at the daily price, Zsolt Wintermantel stated that this was "the result of a gamble", not a conscious decision by the city administration. Energy prices have decreased in the meantime, he added.

In response to the question of how much responsibility Gergely Karácsony bears for the situation, Zsolt Wintermantel said that the capital's management took over the city with 214 billion forints in 2019, and the business tax represents a surplus of 200 billion forints, meaning that 400 billion forints were "used up" ”, which suggests irresponsible management and incompetence. He noted: the bad decisions that Gergely Karácsony made personally, which caused the money to run out, can be listed item by item.

Source: Civilek.info / MTI / Magyar Nemzet

Cover image: Demonstrators with banners at the session of the Capital Public Assembly at City Hall on April 26, 2023.
MTI/Noémi Bruzák