Ursula von der Leyen’s EU Commission is threatened with new trouble from the European Parliament. MPs see the release of funds to Hungary as a “dirty deal”. Will there now be a trial?
MEPs want to have the release of EU funds to Hungary legally reviewed – and the responsible EU Commission may even want to sue the country before Europe’s highest court.
This emerges from the draft resolution that representatives of Christian Democrats, Social Democrats, Greens and the Left agreed on on Tuesday in Strasbourg. The text instructs the Legal Affairs Committee to prepare possible proceedings before the European Court of Justice (ECJ).
It’s about ten billion euros
The background is the EU Commission’s decision in December to release around ten billion euros in frozen EU funds for the country, despite ongoing criticism of the rule of law in Hungary. The Brussels authorities justified the step by saying that Hungary had met the necessary requirements. Other budget funds amounting to almost twelve billion euros as well as billions in Corona aid remain blocked so far.
In the event that the EU Commission releases further funds without the conditions for this being met, Parliament would reserve the right to take further political and legal steps. This could include, for example, a vote of no confidence, which if successful would require the Commission to resign.
Such a step is already being called for by liberal politicians. The resolution is scheduled to be voted on in plenary on Thursday.
The accusation is blackmail
MEPs had criticized the release of funds across party lines and accused EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen of allowing herself to be blackmailed by Hungary. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban had previously announced that he would block a billion-dollar EU aid package for Ukraine in the fight against Russia.
“This step by the European Parliament is the direct consequence of the dirty deal in December,” said Green MP Daniel Freund. The signal to von der Leyen is clear: “If she simply distributes billions of dollars to evade Hungary’s vetoes, she won’t get away with it.”
The EU had blocked the funds because of concerns that too little was being done under Orban to combat corruption and protect the rule of law. The EU Commission has been accusing Hungary of undermining EU standards and fundamental values for years. The authority launched a number of infringement proceedings and took Hungary to the European Court of Justice several times.
Source: Stern
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