Mayor Gergely Karácsony has suffered his first ‘defeat’ in the capital’s colourful citizenry. The next five years will be characterised by compromises and changing majorities.
A narrow majority (16:14) voted against the left-liberal mayor’s proposal for the body’s statutes. Karácsony had already incorporated several motions from various parliamentary groups into the document, which regulates the capital’s meeting rules and governance structures. Ultimately, however, the citizens’ assembly agreed on a “minimum compromise” by 18 votes to 3 with 10 abstentions. The structures of the newly established committees were linked to personnel decisions.
Pupils politically active
‘The citizens of Budapest have elected a more diverse citizenry, which must manage without a clear natural majority,’ commented the mayor from the left-wing splinter party Párbeszéd. However, a clear majority of 21 votes was given to a plan of measures to implement the ‘Our Budapest’ programme. This programme is backed by the student movements ADOM, EDF and Fridays for Future (FfF). The former has made a name for itself at nationwide solidarity rallies in favour of better conditions for teachers, while FfF has yet to make a mass impact in this country.
During the debate, the mayor emphasised his position that he would not dismiss the initiative for a better future for pupils and students simply because they are ‘system-critical student movements’. The Fidesz-KDNP side criticised that pupils and civilians should not be interpreted as political actors. Dávid Vitézy, chairman of the Podmaniczky movement, said that the problem was not with the students, but with the level of the bill. The Tisza party claimed that the students had taken into account their proposal to hold consultations on a broad basis.
Suburban railways and social housing
With 18 votes in favour and 13 abstentions, the Podmaniczky initiative was supported to draw up a strategy for modernising the suburban railway lines and to implement the project as quickly as possible with government funding. The citizens also instructed the Lord Mayor to negotiate with the government on social housing and to include EU funds in the programmes. Budapest would also like to introduce a moratorium of at least two years on property purchases by foreign investors from third countries. The flat-rate tourism tax on flat rentals is to be halved or cancelled completely if the rental contract is for at least two or three years.
Coalition of Fidesz and DK?
The parties understandably took different views on the developments in the Budapest parliament. The Tisza party declared that what belongs together has grown together. By this they meant the ‘united front’ of Fidesz and DK with the Lord Mayor in order to hand over the time-honoured Gellért Hotel to the empire of the oligarch and Orbán’s son-in-law István Tiborcz ‘at a price’. This coalition has also prevented proposals to end the ‘omnipotence’ of the mayor. ‘For some reason, Fidesz and DK do not want MPs to gain insight into and influence over the governing bodies of municipal companies,’ commented Péter Magyar.
Meanwhile, Fidesz parliamentary group leader Alexandra Szentkirályi complained that the Tisza party was also the voice of Brussels in Budapest. Because the liberals want to push through market prices for energy, Fidesz’s motion to symbolically stand by the policy of lower energy costs was rejected. The ‘liberal rainbow coalition’ also rejected the proposal not to make social rental flats available to migrants, as is common practice in Western capitals. The leadership of Budapest is unable to end the housing crisis, but the government is prepared to help.
