Hungary's new prime minister ousts top officials across state institutions
Péter Magyar’s sweeping purge of Hungary’s public institutions gathered pace on Thursday as the new prime minister demanded the resignation of President Tamás Sulyok and seven other constitutional office-holders in his victory speech, while simultaneously pushing through a constitutional amendment to lower the retirement age for Supreme Court President Péter Polt. By 1 July, Magyar had already dismissed the head of the Media Authority, and the list of replaced leaders now extends to every branch of the security apparatus, the judiciary, the health service and the armed forces.
The scale of the turnover is unprecedented: the heads of all four national intelligence agencies, the national police chief, the director of the National Bureau of Investigation, the commander of the riot police, the prison service, disaster management, the armed forces chief of staff, the national hospital director, the chief medical officer and the ambulance service have all been removed. Some departures were voluntary or retirement-related, but Magyar’s “cleansing operation” has also targeted media outlets, including the flagship state sports daily Nemzeti Sport, where György Szöllősi—described as Viktor Orbán’s favourite journalist—has been replaced by new leadership.
The government has simultaneously launched “Operation Purge Fire” and a political vetting process led by MP Bálint Ruff, but the third round of controversial appointments under the Tisza government has already sparked criticism. “At least three of these moves have been described as odd by people who have worked with these old-new bosses,” the 444.hu report noted, while also highlighting logistical chaos in ministries where staff complain that “the laptop they were given is slow junk” and the parliamentary faction is still adapting to its new role.
Meanwhile, in Germany, the Bundestag’s approval in March 2025 of a cost-containment package for healthcare has triggered fierce backlash from physicians who warn that a new daily cap on billable points for medical services will penalise efficiency and experience. The Swiss system, which the German reform mirrors, assigns fixed tariffs to each procedure; doctors who work faster than the benchmark can treat more patients but risk breaching the new ceiling. “Specialists say the cap will punish experience and efficiency,” the SRF report noted, with some doctors claiming they would be forced to stop work by midday. While the cap can be averaged over a month and does not affect primary care, the president of the Swiss Medical Association, Yvonne Gilli, faces calls for her resignation over the reform’s implementation.
In Saxony-Anhalt, the far-right AfD is preparing its 100-day programme for the 6 September state election in Magdeburg, with party leader Ulrich Siegmund promising to “turn this country upside down” and restore a “good, old Germany.” Key proposals include scrapping at least one ministry, terminating the regional broadcasting treaty to end funding for Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, revising school curricula to emphasise the German Empire and the 19th century, and making childcare and school lunches free from the first child—though the latter would require hundreds of millions of euros in additional spending. “Not everything can be implemented immediately,” Siegmund conceded.
In Berlin, Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig secured cabinet backing for expanded liability rules on rented e-scooters ahead of a Bundestag vote, arguing that rental companies should share responsibility for accidents caused by their vehicles. Under current law, only the rider is liable; if the rider cannot be identified, victims bear the cost. From next year, injured parties will be able to claim damages directly from providers, following a rise in e-scooter accidents from around 4,000 in 2021 to nearly 8,000 in 2024. The new rules will also apply to parked scooters, removing the need for victims to prove negligence.
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