Századok – 2002
Tanulmányok - Cieger András: A számok szorításában. Lónyay Menyhért pénzügyminisztersége (1867–1870) VI/1295
LÓNYAY MENYHÉRT PÉNZÜGYMINISZTERSÉGE (1867-1870) 1329 goknak egy ideig való nélkülözésével fog járni: meg fogja kívánni, hogy a törvényhozás és a kormány kérlelhetetlenül vigye keresztül az erre vezető rendszabályokat: de itt az ideje, hogy mindezekről komolyan gondolkozzunk, azután ez irányban következetesen cselekedjünk." Beszédének záró része azonban mái- emelkedett hangvételű és konszenzuskereső volt. A hazai közélet szereplőinek emlékezetében pozitív képet kívánt magáról rögzíteni. Egyaránt köszönetet mondott pártjának és az ellenzéknek.11 1 A másnap tartott búcsúfogadáson több százan jelentek meg, köztük az ellenzék soraiból is. Ezt követően Lónyay — vegyes érzésekkel a szívében — még az este folyamán Bécsbe utazott, hogy átvegye új hivatalát. CONSTRAINED BY NUMBERS. THE FINANCE MINISTERSHIP OF MENYHÉRT LÓNYAY, 1867-1870 by András Cieger (Summary) Hungarian liberal politicians coming to power in the wake of the Austro-Hungarian Compromise were confounded by enormous tasks. The years ahead called for the enactméht of new laws, the establishment of new institutions of power that met the challenges of the day. Even more than that: they had to transform social thinking and mentality. Government politicians were confronted with the task of getting the society to accept the new political system and of intruducing the people to the working of a civil state, thus conquering popular antipathy towards the state and institutions. In the meanwhile they needed to learn the techniques of leadership and power, to formulate the principles, rules which to many respects still characterize the working of Hungarian parliament. This essay is practically a case study because the author seeks to demonstrate through the finace ministership of Menyhért Lónyay the monumental tasks faced by the governing liberals as well as the solutions they formulated. In the first part of the paper the author describes the establishment of the independent Hungarian Ministry of Finance.His most important finding is that in contrast to other ministries in the Ministry of Finance the political transition did not lead to a profound change of personnel, since handling finances was always a highly professional affair. Lónyay could not do without the expertise of the previous staff. Mass desertion from the part of old bureaucrats occured in local organs of financial administration only. The next chapter charts Lónyay's economic policy through the ministry's budgetary activities.. Budgets are the terrain where objectives (political intentions, social needs) and possibilities continuously collide. These debates are analyzed year by year, revealing Lónyay's views, his conflicts with fellow politicians; and in general the difficulties of government in the first years of the Compromise. The author gives a detailed analysis of Lónyay's economic policy, which was made up of three major elements: 1. Cutting state expenditure (austerity); 2. Increasing state revenues (although not by increasing taxes but by curbing tax evasion and by way of tax reform); 3. The state's role in encouraging investment (through indirect and limited state intervention). In the meantime the author devotes great attention to the conflicts that confronted Lónyay in the course of his work. He partners in debate were numerous: fellow ministers, the leaders of the government party, the budget commission of the house of representatives, the opposition, etc. 111 Lónyay: Beszédek, i. m. 720-728. 1870. máj. 21. (Az idézetek a 723. és 726. oldalról származnak.)
