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LMP SLAMS UNIVERSITY RESTRUCTURING MODEL

 

Universities not participating in the government’s restructuring scheme will be losing development funding, belying the government’s claims that the reform is voluntary, the opposition LMP party said. László Lóránt Keresztes, the leader of the party’s parliamentary group, said Fidesz lawmakers had “confirmed as much” at the cultural committee’s meeting, “and so the government’s lies have been toppled”. Keresztes insisted the true goal of the reorganisation was “developing full political influence and gaining control over European Union funding.” The government parties have rejected LMP’s draft proposal to grant the guarantees demanded by the universities, preserve their autonomy and keep the rights of their Senates and deans intact, Keresztes noted. LMP also proposed that members of the foundation’s board should not have a say in professional issues, and that wage raises should be funded independently from the reform scheme, he said. He said the government was mulling the financial remodelling of the universities choosing not to join the restructuring programme, and called on all those concerned to support LMP’s online petition for the autonomy of universities.