Brussels, 29/10/2014 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has slammed Hungarian plans, submitted to parliament on 21 October, to introduce an internet tax. Digital Affairs Commissioner Neelie Kroes has given her support to the tens of thousands of protesters who have taken to the streets of Budapest in recent days to demonstrate their opposition to a proposal they say is a threat to freedom. Kroes has tweeted that the plan is a disgrace. She said it was terrible that the Hungarian government thinks it has the power to curtail the freedom of the press by targeting media owners, then taxing the alternative to them. She said this was the wrong direction to be taking, and called on all Europeans to support the protesters. This proposed tax is “part of a troubling pattern of behaviour and laws from the Hungarian governments, and more than that it is bad news for the internet which is a global common resource”, added the commissioner's spokesperson Ryan Heath on Tuesday 28 October.
The Bill introduced by the government of Viktor Orban would add a surcharge of 150 forints (about €0.50) to the cost of every gigabyte downloaded or uploaded in Hungary. In the face of widespread pressure, the government has said it will cap this surcharge at 700 forints (€2.26) for individuals. It says the tax is necessary to fill the holes in the 2015 budget, Hungary being one of the most heavily indebted countries of the EU. The tax, it points out, will not be payable by end users but by internet service providers. Hungarians already face high internet access charges compared with other European countries, with a price per additional gigabyte of around €10 compared, for example, with 20 cents in Finland. With their parliament due to vote on the Bill on 17 November, Hungarians have been holding mass demonstrations since the plans were announced. Underlining that the digital sector is the future of the European economy and will prevent a large part of Europe from falling into recession, Heath noted that Hungary already performs below the European average on all the digital indicators and that this tax will only make matters worse. “Taxing that (the internet) in a country already below the average is a particularly bad idea”, he commented. He stressed the importance for the European Commission to intervene in the debate at this stage, before the said proposed tax becomes law, given the impact it will have on citizens across Europe. “If Hungary creates a precedent on this issue, it could become a problem in many other member countries and, thus, have a wider effect on European growth”, he argued.
MEPs Sophie in 't Veld and Marietje Schaake put a Parliamentary question to the Commission on the Hungarian Bill. “The internet tax proposed by the Orban government will deter investors, reduce access to the internet for low incomes, and potentially limit freedom on the internet. My recommendation: 'Orban, bin this law!'” said in 't Veld. Schaake added: “Hungary should not hamper the establishment of a digital single market which we so desperately need in Europe. By being the first country in the world to tax internet use, this is a real risk. I also want to be sure neutrality is not undermined by the Orban government plans”. (IL)