EU Council unlocks Hungarys recovery funds as Germany approves healthcare savings
The EU Council on Friday approved Hungary’s revised €10 billion recovery and resilience plan, unlocking funds frozen since 2021 and allowing Budapest to draw down the money by the end of August. Finance ministers from the 27 member states voted unanimously to endorse the plan, which had been blocked under the previous government over rule-of-law and corruption concerns. The decision follows three months of intensive negotiations led by Prime Minister Péter Magyar and his cabinet, culminating in a social media post declaring “We promised, we delivered” and vowing that the funds would flow to transport, energy, healthcare, water infrastructure and business support.
Hungary’s new Transport and Investment Minister Dávid Vitézy hailed the decision as “a super piece of news,” noting that the €10 billion—of which €6.5 billion is grant money and €3.5 billion is loans—could have been accessed as early as August 2021 had earlier governments met EU transparency and anti-corruption standards. “We had to act: we introduced anti-corruption measures, improved the transparency of public spending and tightened asset-declaration rules,” Vitézy said in a video statement. He added that the tight August deadline requires rapid deployment, with priorities including new suburban rail lines, InterCity trains, grid modernization, support for small and medium-sized enterprises and a new social housing program. “The remaining €6.4 billion will follow once we unlock the previously frozen cohesion funds,” he said.
The EU’s green light also clears the way for Hungary to join the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, a step the bloc’s justice ministers approved on Friday. The decision will take legal effect 20 days after publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
In Berlin, the Bundesrat gave final approval to a contentious health-care savings package that will limit contribution increases for the statutory insurance system while cutting spending across doctors’ offices, hospitals and the pharmaceutical sector. Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU) told lawmakers that without the reform, premiums would rise by one percentage point in 2027. “Everyone in the health-care system must contribute because everyone benefits from sustainable financing,” she said. The Bundestag had approved the measure the previous day, with 318 votes in favor, 284 against and four abstentions. Opposition parties warned the cuts would trigger hospital insolvencies and overburden general practitioners. Green parliamentary leader Britta Haßelmann said the law would produce “hospital bankruptcies, overworked family doctors and betrayed psychotherapists,” while Left Party chief Heidi Reichinnek argued it “endangers lives.”
The Bundesrat also signed off on a softened heating law that relaxes earlier requirements for renewable-energy use in new fossil-fuel boilers. From 2029, newly installed oil and gas heaters must run on 10 percent renewable fuels, rising to 60 percent by 2040. The previous administration had sought stricter phase-outs, but the new rules allow continued operation and installation of conventional systems while gradually increasing the renewable blend.
Meanwhile, the European Parliament cleared a major hurdle for the planned digital euro, approving its negotiating mandate and paving the way for final talks with EU member states on the currency’s design and rollout. The assembly’s vote follows months of debate over privacy, financial stability and cross-border usability. European Commission officials said negotiations with the Council could begin within weeks.
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