Loss of trust and a deepening rift: the Hungarian EU commissioner and his comment about idiots
Some in the European Parliament were already unhappy with Olivér Várhelyi, and his statement with his microphone left on only exacerbated this. The Commission has accepted Várhelyi's explanation of the misunderstanding, but several MEPs are still calling for his head.
Olivér Várhelyi is considered an outstanding expert, but with a difficult character, who has been working with the EU for practically his entire career. In January, the European Parliament called for an investigation into the Hungarian Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy for what it says is a failure to address rule of law issues in countries seeking to join the EU, which some suspect is in the interests of the Hungarian government whereas this should not be affecting his work. The rift between him and the MEPs could now become even deeper after he forgot to turn off his microphone and called people idiots during a session of the European Parliament.
