Brussels, 04/01/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 4 January, the European Commission reiterated its concern regarding the adoption of new laws in Hungary, which are causing considerable controversy. The Commission stated it was ready to trigger infringement proceedings if such laws were shown not to be in line with EU law, and also challenged press articles reporting on its spineless lack of action.
“Our concerns remain and will remain until the European Commission has completed its legal assessment of these new laws” adopted last week, a spokesman for the European Commission, Olivier Bailly, said. Only in the light of that analysis, he added, will the college of commissioners decide on what to do next. The Commission is expected to take position in coming days or weeks, the spokesman said.
In recent days, the Commission has been called upon to react with greater firmness further to the adoption of new constitutional laws in Hungary, including reform of the Hungarian central bank. Those laws were adopted thanks to a two-third majority held by the Fidesz party under Prime Minister Viktor Orban. France's Foreign Minister Alain Juppé thus called on the Commission, on Tuesday, to “take the necessary initiatives to ensure fundamental principles are respected everywhere, including in Hungary”. Bailly nonetheless affirmed that the Commission was the very first to express its concerns to the Hungarian authorities, early December last year.
Article 258 of the EU Treaty. The spokesman set out details to the press on the stages of infringement proceedings in accordance with the Treaty (Article 258) for primary and secondary law (formal letter of notice, assent, referral to the EU Court of Justice). The Lisbon Treaty provides for two possibilities: either the Commission calls on the Court to condemn the country for failing to comply with EU law, or the Commission calls on the Court to impose financial penalties. If the member state does not abide by the Court's ruling, then the Commission can use Article 260 which allows another infringement procedure to be opened for failing to follow a Court ruling and, in that case, the Commission can go directly to the Court after a letter of formal notice calling for further financial penalties. The Commission can decide at any moment to launch infringement proceedings, without waiting for a monthly package.
In order to protest against the disputed reform of the central bank of Hungary, the Commission and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had decided, in December 2011, to interrupt a mission in Budapest set up to discuss financial support for Hungary estimated at €15-€20 billion.
Furthermore, the Commission has again called on Budapest to guarantee media plurality, given that the only opposition radio channel in the country, Klubradio, had to give up broadcasting in December, after withdrawal of its frequency by the Media Council, linked to the Orban government. European Commissioner Neelie Kroes, responsible for the Digital Agenda, encourages the Hungarian government to contemplate adding new radio frequencies and to promote the installation of radio on the internet, the spokesman, Ryan Heath, said.
ALDE Group supports political and legal sanctions
The time has passed for exchanges of letters between the Commission and the Orban government: the time has now come for EU institutions to initiate legal and political sanctions, on the basis of the EU treaties, Guy Verhofstadt, the leader of the ALDE Group in the European Parliament (EP), said on Wednesday 4 January. He added that the ALDE Group would follow up the matter with all parliamentary means at its disposal to ensure that the reactionary reforms of the Orban government were reversed. The Commission and the Council must be called to the next EP plenary session (which begins on Monday 16 January) to report on what they intend to do with regard to Hungary, Verhofstadt said. In addition, the committees responsible for examining breaches of fundamental rights and the rule of law should be invited to examine the various changes enacted and to report to EP plenary.
The ALDE Group notes that the Treaty, in Article 7, allows for action to be taken in cases of serious and continued infringement of European values. “Unfortunately, the time has come to apply it”, the ALDE Group says. Under the terms of this Article, the Council, “acting by a majority of four fifths of its members” after obtaining the consent of the European Parliament, may determine that there is a clear risk of a serious breach by a member state of EU values. This Article was added after the Haider affair. (LC/transl.jl)