Hungarian government official denies reshuffle plans

Sep 27, 2007, 10:43 GMT

Budapest - A senior politician in Hungary's ruling coalition on Thursday denied press reports that the government was planning a cabinet reshuffle.

'Ministries led by (junior coalition party) the Alliance of Free Democrats are not going to be affected by any changes and there are no meetings about this,' leader of the Free Democrats and Minister of Economy and Transport Janos Koka told MTI news agency.

Koka was responding to a report from the right-of-centre Magyar Nemzet claiming that Health Minister Agnes Horvath - a Free Democrat appointee - would be sacked and her ministry merged with the labour and social affairs ministry.

Horvath was appointed earlier this year after previous Health Minister Lajos Molnar quit. Molnar claimed that he left for personal reasons, but rumours persisted that he resigned after a fall-out over remodelling the healthcare insurance system.

The Free Democrats and the Hungarian Socialist Party on Monday finally reached a deal on the insurance system after months of dispute.

Economic reforms aimed at cutting Hungary's massive budget deficit lie at the heart of the changes, which will see partially-privatized regional health funds replacing the current centralized body.

Magyar Nemzet, citing sources within the Socialists, also said that the Free Democrats would be given the foreign ministry and that Koka would step down and be replaced by the minister for local government, Gordon Bajnai.