Hungary ends state postal service monopoly

Hungarian Parliament has approved new legislation to terminate the monopoly of national service provider Magyar Posta. The move removes the last obstacle in the way of opening the market in its entirety to privately owned companies.

As the financial website portfolio.hu reports, the new law was approved by 254 members of parliament this Monday, with the remaining 100 representatives opposing the proposal, submitted by National Development Minister Mrs. László Németh.

The new legislation defines the future role of Magyar Posta as that of a universal postal service provider until the end of 2020. The special status of the former incumbent is necessary to ensure basic postal services remain available to everyone in Hungary at affordable prices, including remote areas where they cannot be operated profitably, the minister said.

The law makes it possible for Magyar Posta to receive compensation from budget funds for losses incurred by keeping these services operational throughout the country.