Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga has placed two pieces of draft legislation before parliament in Budapest aimed at countering corruption and complying with demands set by the European Commission for greater legislative transparency.
The move by Hungary, which is aimed at releasing pandemic funds allocated by the European Union, for countering the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, was reported by the country's media on Wednesday.
The legislation, which will provide for more effective measures to combat corruption and will make for greater transparency in the legislative process, were put forward on Tuesday.
Hungary has theoretically been entitled to €7.2 billion ($7.3 billion) from an EU pandemic package agreed at the end of 2020, but the commission said it perceived considerable risks that the money could be misused and so withheld the funds.
As the state prosecutor's office was controlled by supporters of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's right-wing nationalist government, cases of corruption scarcely ever resulted in prosecutions of people close to him or from the leadership of his Fidesz party, it said.
The two pieces of draft legislation are now intended to clear away these concerns. In terms of the first, Hungarians will in future be able to apply to the courts in cases where they believe prosecutors have arbitrarily halted investigations into corruption.
The second provides for laws to be subject to public debate before being passed by parliament, by contrast with current practice, in which important legislation is often rushed through parliament within 24 hours.
