Brussels, 19/07/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 19 July, the European Commission formally closed the infringement procedure opened against Hungary on 17 January 2012 over the independence of its central bank, Magyar Nemzeti Bank (MNB). This decision was made possible thanks to the adoption by the Hungarian Parliament of legal amendments to the central bank statute on 6 July, in line with the commitments Prime Minister Viktor Orban made to Commission President José Manuel Barroso at their meeting on 24 April (see EUROPE 10650).
The Commission will now closely monitor implementation of Hungary's commitment to respect the independence of the MNB. The Commission is also examining the compatibility with the Treaty of the inclusion of some monetary policy instruments of the MNB in the base taxed under the new financial transaction duty.
Several mission teams of the Commission and the IMF (International Monetary Fund), with the ECB (European Central Bank) participating as an observer, have now arrived in Budapest to begin discussions with the Hungarian authorities on a precautionary financial assistance programme. The Commission is counting on the openness of the Hungarian authorities to engage in a genuine policy dialogue to facilitate the success of the negotiations that can now get underway.
The revised law adopted on 6 July integrates the most important remaining elements requested by the European Commission. The principal amendments regard the distribution of executive power between the Monetary Council and the Executive Board. The MNB's obligation to submit Monetary Council meeting agendas to the Government, the right of the Government's representative to be present at Monetary Council meetings and the abolition of the Monetary Council when Hungary adopts the euro have been removed. The Commission had considered that these provisions were incompatible with the independence requirements of the EU Treaties (Article 130 TFEU and Article 14 of the Statute of the European System of Central Banks and of the European Central Bank). (LC/transl.fl)