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Hungary agrees fiscal compact

February 21, 2012

The Hungarian parliament has agreed to sign up to a new EU budget pact designed to limit public spending and end the eurozone debt crisis. The so-called fiscal compact has been agreed by most of the bloc's 27 members.

https://p.dw.com/p/146Hn
Coins from Hungary's Forint currency
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

Hungary's parliament passed a resolution on Monday to back an EU budget pact aimed at controlling debt.

The resolution passed with 304 votes, including Prime Minister Viktor Orban's ruling Fidesz party and the opposition Socialists. The 42 members of the far-right Jobbik party voted against the resolution and the Greens abstained.

"All points in the pact" were acceptable to Hungary, Orban said in parliament.

The so-called "fiscal compact" was approved in principle in December. Among other things, the pact requires countries to introduce balanced budget rules into their laws or constitutions.

Although it would apply at the very minimum to the 17 countries using the euro, every EU country, except Britain, initially said that it was willing to consider adhering to it. Last month, however, the Czech Republic became the second of the EU's 27 nations to refuse to join.

As the leader of a non-eurozone member state, Orban had also previously voiced opposition to the pact. He finally agreed to sign, however, on the basis that its restrictions would only apply to Hungary if it joined the eurozone.

The agreement is expected to be finalized by the leaders of the remaining EU nations next month.

ccp/pfd (AP, AFP)