Budapest, December 2 (MTI) – Main opposition Fidesz leader
Viktor Orban in a radio interview aired on Sunday vowed to reverse
the government’s reforms of health care, insisting that the ruling
Socialist-Liberal coalition was on the verge of collapse. Continue »

Budapest, December 2 (MTI) – Mainly cloudy in the morning,
clearing up towards afternoon. Rain can be expected in places at
around dawn. Lowest night-time temperatures: -1 to +4 degrees Celsius.
Daytime highs: 5-10 degrees. Continue »

Budapest, December 2 (MTI) – One game was played in Group C of
the women’s water polo Champion Teams’ European Cup qualifiers in
Dunaujvaros, S Hungary, on Sunday. Dunaujvaros College-ELCO – Leiden Oestgeest (Netherlands) 8:7 (1:1,3:2, 0:1, 4:3)Played on Saturday:Dunaujvaros College-ELCO – Bochum (Germany) 14:7 (4:1, 1:0, 4:1, 5:5)  Continue »

Budapest, (MTI) – Result of a men’s volleyball match
played in an Olympic pre-qualification tournament in Szombathely, W
Hungary, on Saturday: Poland-Hungary 3:1 (14,18,-20,17) Continue »

Budapest, (MTI) – A group of Albanian nationals from
Kosovo was detained by Hungarian border control officers near
Asotthalom (S) early on Saturday, a local spokesman told MTI. The two families — five adults and four children, including an
eleven-month-old infant — had left their homes to go to Germany in
the hope of finding employment, Zsolt Szabo said.     The Albanians paid 2,000 euros per adult and 500 euros per child
to a yet unidentified smuggler to escort them across the border,
Szabo said.     The group have applied to the Hungarian authorities for refugee
status and have been admitted to a temporary refugee shelter in
Debrecen (E). Continue »

Budapest, (MTI) – Hungary’s government is pressed for
time and must go on with its reform programme, Prime Minister Ferenc
Gyurcsany said on Saturday, at a conference organised by the
Tancsics and Friedrich Ebert foundations. Continue »

Budapest, (MTI) – Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany
said on Saturday that the government would succeed in getting its
current health reform bill through parliament, and once the measures
are passed the toughest period of the reforms will be over. Continue »

Budapest, (MTI) – Hungary’s reform of the health-care
funding system faces stiff opposition from trade unions, who plan to
augment their planned strikes in late December by lobbying Socialist
MPs who are disgruntled by the reforms to vote against the bill,
which was spearheaded by their small liberal governing ally SZDSZ. The bill, the result of a hard-fought compromise between the
ruling Socialists and SZDSZ thrashed out earlier this week, contains
measures such as setting up regional health funds in which private
insurers can buy minority stakes. Liga, a big trade union confederation, and the main railway
union have called a strike for December 17 and vow to keep it up
unless the government ditches the health reforms. In addition, Liga
plans to lobby around 40 Socialist MPs to vote against the
government proposals, said national daily Nepszabadsag on Saturday. Continue »

Budapest, (MTI) – Gas prices in Hungary will rise by
five percent from January 1, 2008, said outgoing Economy Minister
Janos Koka on Saturday. Koka said the hike was not a true reflection of price rises on
the world market. Hungary recently scrapped its universal energy subsidies and now
operates a limited means-tested subsidy aimed at the poorest members
of society. Meanwhile Koka, who is stepping down as minister to concentrate
on leading the small governing liberal party, said the government
was not going to step back from its reform process. Continue »