Econ Min-'Realistic Chance' EU Releases Funds After Poland Election

Index.hu has published an interview with Hungarian Economy Minister Márton Nagy in which he claims that there is a "realistic chance" that Hungary could gain access to its suspended EU cohesion funds after the Polish election takes place on 15 October. He mentions this as one of three potential boosts to the state budget, the others being the potential for 'extra profits' generated by some public companies being channeled into the budget, and the MNB Act extending the period in which the gov't has to make up deficits engendered by operational losses at the central bank from eight days to five years.

• States that the 2023 budget needs to be modified, but that the gov't cannot support any measures that hurt Hungary's economic recovery. Adds that a new tax on banks would pose a threat to reviving lending, and that without lending there is no economic growth.
• Asked "[MNB Gov] György Matolcsy sharply attacked the government's economic policy, describing it as a mass disaster. What do you think about this?" Nagy states: "Recently, the central bank has been continuously criticizing the government's economic policy. You can do this, as the central bank in Hungary is independent. The government naturally respects this independence, so it does not wish to comment on whether the central bank did its job well."
• Also defends gov't-imposed price controls and high inflation (which Nagy sees at 8% next year) from Matolcsy's criticism.