Hungary’s chief prosecutor has requested that the European Parliament waive the immunity of centre-right party leader and MEP (Tisza/EPP) Péter Magyar over alleged phone theft during a night out in Budapest.
This summer, an altercation between Hungarian MEP Péter Magyar and another guest at a Budapest nightclub led the country’s chief prosecutor to press charges against Magyar in September. The Chief Prosecutor, Péter Polt, is a claimed supporter of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and a former member of the ruling Fidesz party,
On Thursday (10 October), European Parliament President Roberta Metsola announced to the plenary that the chamber had received a formal request from Budapest to lift Magyar’s immunity.
This initiates a procedure that is expected to last months. The Parliament’s legal affairs committee (JURI) will discuss the case and present a draft report, followed by a vote on whether to recommend Magyar’s immunity. The final decision will be made by a secret vote in the plenary session, usually by show of hands.
Should the Parliament vote to lift Magyar’s immunity, Hungarian judicial authorities will be able to push legal action.
Péter Magyar, once aligned with Orbán’s Fidesz, has become a leading critic of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government after releasing recordings implicating top officials in tampering with evidence in a high-profile corruption case. Magyar’s Tisza party has campaigned as a clear opposition to Fidesz.
A polling average by Europe Elects from September shows Tisza polling at 36% in Hungary, second only to Fidesz – part of the Patriots for Europe (PfE) group in the Parliament.
Meanwhile, Péter Magyar joined the centre-right Tisza party (EPP) in 2021 and was elected as an MEP following the European elections in June.
According to Parliament procedure, Péter Magyar has the right to meet the JURI committee at its next meeting in November. At the time of publishing, it was unclear whether Magyar would take this opportunity.
Magyar addressed the situation in a post on his Facebook page (29 September).
“I am being denounced on a daily basis and half the state apparatus is working to make up criminal proceedings against me,” he said.
“I have a proposal: (…) You will vote for Hungary to join the European Public Prosecutor’s Office. And I will waive my immunity the moment we join, in case it happens,” Magyar writes.
Hungary is the only EU country without a ‘treaty opt-out’ that is not part of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, prosecuting crimes against the financial interests of the EU, including misuse of EU funds.
“Is that a deal, prime minister? Shall we see whether you or I go to jail for a longer period?”
Asked whether Péter Magyar’s legal immunity should be lifted, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán highlighted the importance of legal protection for lawmakers, stating, “It is a good thing that is needed.”
Speaking during a press conference with journalists in Strasbourg on Tuesday (October 8), Orbán said that the decision is not up to him, but “it is for the European Parliament to decide.”
[Edited by Martina Monti]
Source: euractiv.com
