MEPs from the European Parliament’s Committee on Budgets (BUDG) and Budgetary Control (CONT) met, on Tuesday 7 November, with the European Commissioners for the Budget, Johannes Hahn, and for Jobs and Social Rights, Nicolas Schmit, to discuss the implementation of the ‘Rule of Law’ conditionality mechanism, with a particular focus on the EU funds frozen for Hungary under this mechanism.
The context of the ongoing negotiations on the mid-term review of the 2021-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) (see EUROPE 13280/4) has raised fresh concerns among MEPs about the possibility of Hungary making an agreement on the MFF (including €50 billion in financial aid to Ukraine) conditional on the release of EU cohesion policy funds for Hungary (€6.3 billion suspended).
“At the moment, the European Commission is said to be ready to release €13 million as part of the revision of the MFF”, said the BUDG Committee Vice-Chair Janusz Lewandowski (EPP, Polish) at the start of the discussion.
During the debate, these comments were quickly contradicted and qualified by Commissioner Hahn, who asked to stick to the facts, without paying any attention to rumours that may have been circulated in the press.
He explained that it was not a question of making decisions at this stage. “Nothing has been decided until everything has been decided. We’re carrying out an assessment and trying to provide clarification”, he said.
“Meetings with Hungarian counterparts take place in a spirit of friendship. There is no fight, no battle, but in terms of outcome, we expect a translation (of measures) into a legal text. This is what is missing, and as long as it is missing, we cannot establish a final judgement”, he added.
However, several MEPs, such as the shadow rapporteur on the text framing the ‘Rule of Law’ conditionality mechanism, Moritz Körner (Renew Europe, German), have highlighted the “blackmail” dynamic that Hungary could continue to exert in other dossiers, such as the negotiations on the next MFF or the ‘Pact for Migration and Asylum’ (see EUROPE 13264/3).
More generally, the co-rapporteur, Petri Sarvamaa (EPP, Finnish), claimed that “the essence of the issue” would not disappear. “This does not mean that Hungary will never meet the criteria and unfreeze its funds, but (...) it is possible to see this situation emerging in all Member States. That’s why we need to continue our work”.
The financial penalty of €6.3 billion for breaches of the Rule of law in Hungary was adopted by the Council of the EU on 15 December 2022 (see EUROPE 13084/19). The European Commission is expected to reassess the situation one year later, on 15 December 2023. (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)