Hungary + EU

Question 1

Issues - refugees

Answer 1

2015​
- during the Refugee Crisis, Hungary built a barrier to stop influx of asylum seekers​
- Sept voted against plan to relocate refugees within EU ​
- NB – this would have taken refugees out of Hungary (Hungary had received 10,000s) NOT led to refugees being moved to Hungary ​

2017​
- issue referred to the European Court of Justice in 2017 ​

2018​
- Hungary made it a criminal offence to help refugees and migrants + restrict rights to claim asylum​
- Sept 2018 European Parliament votes to initiate Article 7 due to persistent breach of core values – failed​

2020​
- April European Court of Justice finds against Hungary​

2021​
- 16 Nov ECJ ruled that the law violates EU law

Question 2

Issues - LGBTQIA+ rights

Answer 2

2020​
- April Hungarian law ended legal recognition of trans people​

2021​
- June Hungary passed a law banning gay people from featuring in: ​
- school educational materials ​
- TV shows for under-18s​

2021​
- 8 July European Parliament votes for urgent legal action over Hungarian law ​
- European Parliament stated Hungarian law breached EU values, principles and law ​
- 459 in favour, 147 against and 58 abstentions​
- 15 July European Commission issued Hungary with an infringement notice

Question 3

EU rule of law mechanism

Answer 3

• Basically enables EU to halt funding to countries that do not have:
  
  • legal certainty​
  • effective judicial protection​
  • independent and impartial courts​
  • separation of power​
  • non-discrimination​
  • transparent management of public funds
• 2020 = Hungary + Poland challenge mechanism because it could be used to punish member about differences in policy attitudes
• 2022 = ECJ rules against H + P (all countries must follow rule of law)
• 2021 = 7 July European Parliament calls on European Commission President (Ursula von der Leyen) to freeze repayments b/c ‘grave breaches of the rule of law’​
• Hungary allegedly:
  
  • egregiously violated basic rule-of-law principles’​
  • guilty of democratic backsliding and corruption​
• EU suspended payments from its pandemic recovery funds to Hungary and Poland:
  
  • €5.8bn cut in funding for Hungary​
    -20 Nov first step toward triggering a mechanism to cut EU funds ​
  • European Commission sent letters to Hungary and Poland saying that problems with breaches of rule of law posed a risk to EU’s financial interests

Question 4

Article 7 of Treaty of the EU

Answer 4

• EU may suspend certain rights from a member state ​
• BUT Article 7 does not allow EU to expel a member state!​
• fellow EU members required to identify another member who is persistently breaching EU’s founding values :
  
  • eg respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities​
• European Council:
  
  • can vote to suspend any rights of membership, such as voting and representation ​
  • identifying the breach requires unanimity (excluding the state concerned)​
  • sanctions require only a qualified majority​
  • Council acting by majority may alter or lift such sanctions​
  • the state in question would still be bound by the obligations of the treaties

MAIN PROBLEM IS THAT HUNGARY + POLAND BOTH IN TROUBLE WITH EU, THEREFORE TEAM UP AND PREVENT UNANIMITY