Declaration of the Hungarian Europe Society*
The Hungarian Europe Society welcomes the European Council’s appointment of Jean-Claude Juncker, candidate of the European People’s Party, the political party receiving the most votes in this year’s elections for the European Parliament, to the post of President of the European Commission. It is a particularly important development that the pro-European party families nominated leading politicians for the position in advance and that throughout the campaign, these top candidates made their views on current European issues known to the interested European public in televised debates. The decision of the Heads of State and Government strengthens the system of representative democracy in the European Union and may lead to more transparency within the multi-level European governance. In our view, the competition of European political parties, complemented by further institutional and electoral reforms, can bring Europe closer to its citizens. Despite the advancement of Eurosceptic parties, the construction of the European political and economic integration should be continued. The recognition of the final results of the European elections is a forward-looking step, challenging nationalist and populist manoeuvring.
We hope that, in spite of the negative stance and ideological isolation of the British Prime Minister, the United Kingdom will not irreversibly spin away from the European Union. We wish the same for Hungary, even though the conflicts of the past four years have pushed the Hungarian Prime Minister to the margins of negotiations between parties and member states, and he voted against the decision of the obvious, qualified, majority. We are still hopeful that Viktor Orbán and his government discontinue their self-interested fight against Europe, which is doomed to similar failures in the European political sphere.
Budapest, 30 June 2014
*This statement does not necessarily reflect the convictions of all members of HES.