Speeches

Dear Mr President, 2024 was one of the hottest summers in history. Climate change is no longer just a distant threat, it is part of our daily lives, and it is taking lives within the walls of hospitals. In Hungary, summer heatwaves have created life-threatening conditions. As a doctor, I've seen elderly patients in a 30-35-degree ward fight for their lives on countless occasions. Doctors and nursing colleagues reported that they are extremely burdened and endanger patients' recovery from high temperatures. High temperatures put an extreme strain on the cardiovascular system, slow wound healing, increase the risk of infection, and lead patients and doctors to mental and physical exhaustion. We need to fight climate change together, which is why I was a member of the European Parliament delegation to the COP-29 climate summit. At the same time, Member States need to prepare their economies and social systems for the effects of climate change. Hungary has failed in both areas, and the Hungarian government has failed. They limit the use of green energies and play out hospital renovations as oligarchs instead of tailoring the hospital care system to patients' needs on a professional basis. We need to act urgently and together. Climate change is part of our daily lives, and every moment we waste puts people's lives at risk.

My fellow Member, I believe that I have provided the facts and precise figures, which continue to show that those who take care of their relatives at home receive between EUR 100 and 200 per month, an unjustly low amount. If you, your government, really care about the situation of persons with disabilities and the situation of their families, then as a first step your support should be increased, because your relatives give their lives to help their relatives with disabilities, and you do not take this into account, you do not support them.

Madam President, I'm sorry. The current Hungarian government has abandoned people with disabilities, their families and the relatives caring for them at home. The support they receive is unjustly low. Home nurses receive between €100 and €200 gross per month, which is below the minimum subsistence level in net terms. This is not only a human but also a national failure. Equal opportunities for young people with disabilities also paint an alarming picture: 30-40% of 18-24 year olds are forced to drop out of school prematurely, compared to only 10% of non-disabled people. The situation in the labour market is also appalling: the employment rate of people with disabilities is 30% lower than that of non-disabled people. This means that there are tens of thousands of people who cannot use their skills and knowledge. As a doctor, I have also seen that healthcare management and the healthcare system in Hungary do not support or provide them with adequate care. I therefore call on the Hungarian Government to pay attention and take care of people with disabilities and, as a first step, to increase the home care allowance to a level worthy of living.

Dear Mr President, There is growing scientific evidence that e-cigarettes and emerging nicotine products pose significant health risks. A serious problem is that these products have become fashionable among young people. They are often claimed to be less harmful without evidence. They are advertised as veiled fashion and harmless habit, while underestimating their harmful effects on young people. However, the reality is that these products can lead to addiction and long-term physical and mental harm. Proper regulation, education and prevention are key to ensuring that young people are adequately protected and aware of the risks. The EU must send a clear message. We must protect the health of our citizens and protect young people and children from addictive products.

Dear fellow Members, The climate conference has been held every year since 1995. Yet we see that the effects of climate change are posing increasingly serious challenges. Severe droughts are rendering our agricultural lands infertile, and flash floods affecting the increasingly frequent Carpathian Basin and the Iberian Peninsula are causing enormous damage to agriculture, threatening the homes of our inhabitants and claiming innocent lives. For more than a year, the European Union has been warning us about the health impacts of environmental change and climate change. Nevertheless, some governments, including the Hungarian government, are ignoring the dangers. Substantive action remains to be taken, putting the lives of our children and grandchildren at risk. I consider it important to be an active participant of the climate conference as a member of the European Parliament of the Tisza Party, to represent the interests of the Hungarian and European peoples, so that together we can create a better and more livable planet.

Dear Madam President, Fidesz MP András László serves Russian interests even on the Day of Remembrance of the Heroes of 1956. In September 2021, the Director-General of the Hungarian National Security Service reported that the Russian secret service had compromised the communication system of the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. More than 4,000 workstations and more than 900 servers were affected. The Russian intelligence services had access to all sensitive data. Despite this, after three years, the Hungarian government has not provided an answer as to how this could have happened and what steps it has taken to prevent further intrusions. On behalf of the Hungarian people and all European citizens, I call on you to stand up for whose interests you are serving and how you are defending sovereignty, while at the same time leaving our country and Europe at the mercy of Russia. We cannot allow Fidesz to desecrate the memory of the 1956 heroes over and over again!

Dear Mr President, The Central and Eastern European region faces serious challenges that pose a serious threat to the well-being of our societies. The exodus of intellectual capital and population decline has become critical in this region. The departure of highly qualified workers abroad is also clearly visible in Hungary, leading to labour shortages in healthcare, education and child protection. Rural hospitals are understaffed and schools are underfunded, which is an example of a regional education crisis. The role of trade unions has been weakened and workers' rights are not enforced. The Hungarian government has increased the maximum number of overtime hours to 400 per year, while the minimum wage is less than €700. In our country, due to the misguided decisions of the incompetent government, we increasingly feel the difficulties of the Central and Eastern European region. For this reason, it is important that, even if some governments ignore the situation of workers and vulnerable people, we develop EU solutions that address and care for these social groups in a long-term and sustainable manner.

Dear Mr President, October 10 is World Mental Health Day. Mental health, that is, brain health, is a fundamental right for all people in neurological and mental terms. Research shows that one in four people in Europe suffers from mental health problems in their lifetime. In other words, in Europe, on our continent, more than 100 million people are affected by mental health problems. As a doctor in Hungary, I have had the opportunity to experience the increasing challenges of providing care for elderly people with dementia, increasing depression among working-age adults, and the limited rehabilitation of Hungarians suffering from mental illness. Healthcare professionals, nurses and relatives caring for their family members are under increasing pressure every day. Depression has been one of the leading causes of unemployment across Europe since the COVID-19 outbreak. In Hungary, this situation is exacerbated by political and social circumstances. There is no better proof of this than that Hungary has one of the highest suicide rates in Europe. In our country there are only eight psychiatrists per 100,000 people. This is far less than the EU average. Furthermore, psychotherapy, which is an essential treatment for anxiety and mood disorders, is largely inaccessible in the public service system. EU countries are not investing enough in mental health, which is one of the biggest challenges of our time. It is time for greater support for large-scale research, more dedicated resources and a unified EU strategy.

Dear Madam President, Before I was elected to the European Parliament, I worked as a surgeon in Hungary. In a country without basic medical supplies, without toilet paper and without soap in hospitals, where health indicators are deteriorating year after year, where tens of thousands of nurses and thousands of doctors are missing from the health care system. Most medical devices are ageing, and underfunded healthcare facilities cannot finance new devices because they owe billions to suppliers. It is not a very encouraging situation for my country's ageing society. The EU revision of the Medical Devices Regulation is a very important matter that cannot be postponed. Urgent action is needed to ensure that patients continue to have access to life-saving and quality-of-life technologies not only in Hungary but also in Europe. We need to make licensing predictable, more transparent and more efficient. If we do not simplify certification processes, reduce administrative burdens and harmonise national regulations, we will lose valuable time and even lives. These measures are essential to keep innovative products in the EU and make them available. Immediate action is vital for the recovery of patients and to support the work of healthcare professionals, because in an operating room, in a critical situation, one thing matters: Is there a way to save the patient's life or not?