Hungary to scrap voucher system, limit state borrowing
The Hungarian government is planning to scrap its unified voucher system after the European Commission raised concerns over the practice, and will also limit borrowing next year to developments and not for the operation of the state, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said today, according to reports.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán speaks at MKIK conference in Budapest today. (Photo: MTI/Szilárd Koszticsák)
Speaking at an event organized by the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MKIK), the prime minister said that instead of vouchers, employers can reward their employees with cash, eliminating the “veiled” system of double remuneration, Hungarian news agency MTI reported.
The European Court of Justice said in February that Hungary’s unified voucher system, introduced in 2011, violated key European Union tenets, discriminating against or restricting the freedom of establishment and the freedom to provide services, MTI reported, adding that the EC took Hungary to court over the matter in 2013.
In connection with state borrowing, Orbán said that limiting borrowing to developments is the only way to achieve a balanced budget, MTI added.
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