Nearly twelve years have passed since the government
decided, in April 1998, to commence the codification of a new Civil
Code. The declared aim was the creation of a new and comprehensive
system of rules for modern Hungarian private law to replace the Civil
Code of 1959.
Besides lengthening days and the sound of birdsong there
is another unmistakable sign that spring is on its way: the Budapest
Spring Festival. The packed two-week programme attracts guests from
near and far to Hungary’s capital to experience one cultural highpoint
after another.
Long queues stretch all the way from the supporters’
shop at the FTC stadium on ÜllĹ‘i út onto the pavement outside. The fans
are not waiting to buy mugs or club shirts, but to register for their
supporters’ card.
Competition in private banking is tough and chiefly
fought out over the investment products available and the level of
service. Sven Doernbrack, Department Director of MKB Bank Zrt. Private
Banking, spoke to The Budapest Times about MKB Bank’s strategy and the
outlook for this year.
Police raided two suburban marijuana farms allegedly run
by Vietnamese criminal gangs last week. One was in Fót, north of
Budapest, and the other on Csepel Island in the capital’s southernmost
District XXI.
Eight European Union countries laid the groundwork in
Budapest last week for a new strategy to develop the Danube region. A
declaration was signed by senior representatives of Germany, Austria,
Slovenia, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.
Although the emphasis was on transport infrastructure, the paper also
called for a joint strategy in diverse areas ranging from rural
development to tourism, education, culture, sport, food standards and
migration.
“I am sure that Hungary’s foreign policy strategy will
not change greatly,” Economy Minister István Varga said last Tuesday
ahead of the parliamentary elections. Varga was guest speaker at the
Joint Venture Association’s “Hungary’s Foreign Economic Relations 2010”
event.
The number of new homes registered for occupancy fell by
11% to 32,000 in 2009, while new construction permits declined by 35%
yr-on-yr, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) reported last week. The
second half of the previous year showed an even larger decline: the
number of new home permits issued dropped by some 25% while
construction permits nearly halved compared to H2 of 2008, the KSH
found.
The ovation given to the Hungarian Socialist Party
(MSZP) prime ministerial candidate Attila Mesterházy’s speech on
Saturday, 20 February brought back memories of Ferenc Gyurcsány’s
triumphant debut as prime ministerial candidate that instantly won over
MSZP supporters at the party congress in September 2004.
A civil action brought against the police by the
“national commander” of the far-right party Jobbik’s nationalist
paramilitary Hungarian Guard (Magyar Gárda) began last Monday at
Budapest Municipal Court.
