The Orbán government classified the background of the move, driving one of the opposition PM candidates to turn to the European Commission for an infringement procedure to be launched against them.Continue reading
Opposition LMP on Tuesday accused the government of “breaking” Hungary’s national waste management system by outsourcing it at the national level “without any guarantees” and giving all state and European Union support to a single winning bidder.
Addressing an online press conference, Erzsébet Schmuck, the party’s co-leader, criticised the government for having given companies only 12 days to bid for the 35-year waste management concession deal earlier this summer.
However, the winning bidder — which Schmuck said was expected to be oil and gas company MOL – will get two years of preparation, she said. But if the company will not be able to handle the waste management of 4.5 million households and more than 1.7 million businesses, it will have six months to “back out of the deal”, Schmuck added.
She said Prime Minister Viktor Orbán was aware that no Hungarian company could meet all the requirements for the winning bidder, but was still looking to “hand out more financial support” until next year’s general election.
This effects all of society and public health, Schmuck said, adding that the situation demonstrated the government’s irresponsibility and “ruthless greed”.
featured image Erzsébet Schmuck in the Parliament; via Zoltán Balogh/MTI