Debrecen4U
June 24, 2025
Mayor László Papp held talks in Brussels on EU funds for local governments
On 24 June 2025, Mayor László Papp, representing the Association of Cities with County Rights (MJVSZ), arrived in Brussels to discuss EU funds for local authorities with his mayoral colleagues.
He said, “By joining the European Union, our country gave up a significant part of its revenues to contribute to the development of the member states and their settlements by the community goals. Hungarian settlements cannot be second-rate in the European Union either, and this is what happens if we do not have access to EU funds”.
They negotiated with the Vice-President of the European Commission, Raffaele Fitto, and the Commissioner responsible for the budget, Piotr Serafin, to ensure that Hungarian cities have access to EU funds.
“Thank you to them, as well as Minister Tibor Navracsics, for making the meeting possible, and to my colleagues as mayors, Károly Szita, András Cser-Palkovics, and András Nemény, for acting together on this matter. Regardless of party affiliation or the characteristics of our cities, we acted together on this issue, as the development of our cities is not a party political issue but is in the interest of our country and even the EU,” László Papp said.
The city leader emphasised, “ In addition to the above, during the meeting, we also made it clear that the EU punishes our citizens if it does not make money due to the settlements available to us. From the EU funds used so far, nurseries, kindergartens, schools, roads, cultural facilities, and many other things have been built or renovated. Today’s discussion is a connection and an opportunity that opens up. The one-hour meeting took place in a fair atmosphere. Perhaps we have managed to take a step towards making EU decision-makers see that Hungarian settlements deserve support.”
László Papp highlighted that he trusts that the MJVSZ’s approach, which transcends party political divisions, and the civilised, constructive negotiations will bring results for the country and their settlements.
Source and photo credit:debrecen.hu
