The opposition parties on Thursday said ruling Fidesz had “hijacked and neutered” an opposition proposal on addressing the climate emergency.
At an online press conference on Thursday, Erzsébet Schmuck, the co-leader of green LMP, said the proposal initiated by her party had been “emptied to the point of being unrecognisable” and called on the ruling parties to refrain from voting it into law.
Under the amended proposal, the government undertakes much less than what is outlined in the European Union’s aims in slashing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing the use of sustainable energy resources, she said.
The Hungarian government “continues to greenwash nuclear energy” and is pushing the upgrade of Hungary’s Paks nuclear plant, “a dangerous and expensive investment”, she said. Meanwhile, the country still lacks a climate law package, she added.
Schmuck called for a stand-alone “green ministry” to be set up.
At a separate press conference, the Párbeszéd party said its parliamentary group will not vote for the proposal which they had originally submitted to parliament.
Deputy group leader Bence Tordai said that amendment proposals from the ruling parties had thrown out three of their four original goals. The only one left standing was achieving climate neutrality by 2050, he said.
On the other hand, Fidesz has inserted “concepts without any real merit in climate policy”, he said.
In the featured photo: Erzsébet Schmuck of LMP. Photo by Tibor Illyés/MTI