EU Parliament to Question Hungary's Ability to Hold EU Presidency Over Record on Rule of Law

The European Parliament is set to question Hungary’s ability to hold the European Union’s rotating presidency next year. The EU parliament cited Hungary’s record on the rule of law.

A draft parliamentary resolution by the EU Parliament showed that lawmakers will be questioning on Thursday Hungary’s ability to hold the rotating presidency of the EU next year. The resolution cited Hungary’s problems with the rule of law. The parliament will argue that the EU presidency is in charge of driving work for EU legislation as an honest and neutral broker, which Hungary will not be able to meet.

“The Parliament questions how Hungary is able to fulfill this task credibly in 2024 in view of incompliance with EU law and the values enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty of the European Union as well as the principle of sincere cooperation,” said the resolution, which is expected to be adopted on June 1.

In the calendar agreed upon by EU countries back in 2016, Hungary will hold the bloc’s presidency from July to December 2024. Although the calendar has since been changed to adjust to new countries joining, a change based on a country’s issues with the rule of law would be seen as unprecedented.

Budapest has long been at odds with the EU over several issues, including the rule of law, corruption at high levels in the government, the lack of judicial independence, the violation of academic freedoms, and LGBT rights. The EU has frozen billions in funds for Hungary due to these issues. While the Hungarian government has engaged in discussions with the bloc to resolve the issues, there has been a lack of progress.

The bloc as well as the United States have also expressed concerns about a new law in Poland that they say could effectively bar individuals who allegedly acted under Russian influence from holding public office without undergoing the proper judicial review. The law was drafted by Poland’s governing nationalist PIS party ahead of a parliamentary election that will take place in October or November.

The concerns were dismissed by the Polish foreign ministry, saying that the law provided for “due process in a fair procedure.”

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