Many billions of EU subsidies to Hungary have been frozen due to, among other things, the poor state of the judiciary and large-scale corruption. Brussels holds, among other things, money from the corona recovery fund and subsidies to support the poorest parts of the union. But some measures to make the judiciary more independent again have gone well with the European Commission. It appears it is now preparing to welcome the government in Budapest, Wolters says.
Deprived and bullied
It shouldn’t come to this, says PvdA MEP, who, together with other parliamentary specialists, has been exploring Hungary in recent days. They found that “opposition and critical media are discriminated against and harassed” and that “foreign companies are barred or forced to be taken over”. For example, Budapest, where the opposition is in charge, suddenly has to pay the government much more, and a soup kitchen of a critical church has received an intimidating visit from machine-gun-wielding inspectors.
The Brussels delegation was also “received with hostility”, particularly by the pro-government press, Wolters said. “Since we arrived it has been a mud throwing. Of a childishness you can’t recover from for a while.’ A key figure like the Hungarian justice minister had no time for visitors and the Court of Auditors, among others, had no answer to their many questions.
Good Hope
“At the same time you see that they want something from us,” says Wolters. The official meetings were conducted with all due respect. She is therefore also hopeful that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will eventually recover. The Hungarian economy is in bad shape and urgently needs European money. “They are really in trouble and they need us.”
Ultimately, EU countries and the European Commission decide on subsidies for Hungary, Wolters acknowledges. “But let’s keep up the pressure. We would like to help Hungary recover, but only if all conditions are met.’