Of the four new members, two, Tamás Bánfi and Csaba Csáki, are department heads of Corvinus University. The third new member is Péter Bihari, managing director of 7Sigma Financial Market Research Kft. and former chief economist of Budapest Bank Rt. Judit Neményi, chief research fellow of Financial Research Rt., was nominated to be the fourth new member of the council. Neményi worked at the MNB until 2001, when MNB President Zsigmond Járai dismissed her.

If President of the Republic Ferenc Mádl approves the nomination, the number of monetary council members will grow to 13 until July 2, 2007, when the mandate of current members Henrik Auth and Péter Adamecz will end. From then on, the council will be made up of 9 to 11 members including the MNB President and the vice-president responsible for monetary policy. Four of the ordinary members will be nominated by the MNB President, in agreement with the Prime Minister, while the remaining members will be appointed by the Prime Minister in agreement with the MNB President.

After Gyurcsány’s move last week, MNB President Zsigmond Járai issed a statement to protest the nominations, saying that “it cannot be named an agreement when the MNB President is informed about the decision on the members one hour prior to the official announcement of the names.” Járai added in his statement that the PM should have waited until the Constitutional Court rules on the query of two Fidesz MPs requesting a review of the amendment to the Central Bank Act that increased central government influence on appointing members to the monetary council.