Hungary has pulled closer to the EU - the UK should follow suit

While not usually a follower of Hungarian politics, I admit to being one of those in the UK who took a belated interest in the election which saw the removal of Viktor Orbán after 16 years in power. A pioneer of the style of government which came to be known as “illiberal democracy” Orbán was swept aside by a former ally who promised closer ties with the EU, despite the incumbent maintaining the support of powerful friends such as Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin. Even a late mercy dash to Budapest by hillbilly-made-good JD Vance, who hypocritically accused the EU of meddling in Hungarian affairs as he offered Orbán the White House’s imprimatur, was not enough to save the prime minister. 

Péter Magyar’s victory, and the securing of a two-thirds majority in parliament, is sufficient to begin reversing some the reforms which increasingly concentrated power in the prime minister’s hands while shackling his political opponents. It’s also potentially good news for Ukraine, with the pro-Moscow Orbán a major block on EU military assistance for Kyiv. More than that, however, it is a bloody nose for those outside of Hungary who saw the outgoing PM as a kindred spirit, whether that be Vance, Marine Le Pen in France, or Reform UK’s Nigel Farage who once called Orbán “the strongest leader in Europe and the EU’s biggest nightmare”. 

Farage’s latest campaign is to rail against the so-called ‘Boriswave’, the sharp rise in net migration driven by non-EU citizens coming to the UK which began during Johnson’s time in Downing Street. Alongside party colleague Zia Yusuf, Farage unveiled a new document complete with race-baiting cover mocked up to show thousands of Muslim men waiting to cross the border into Britain. It sets out what Reform calls the “poisonous legacy” of the Tories’ approach to immigration which has created a “ticking fiscal bomb” for the British economy. 

Net migration has actually fallen by nearly 80 per cent since the Tories left office, returning to pre-Brexit levels, which is why Farage is focussing on the immigrants who are already here rather than simply demonising those yet to arrive. Indeed, there is just one passing mention of the B-word in Reform’s latest offering, despite Britain’s exit from the EU and the need to replace departing European workers being the reason why so many foreigners arrived between 2021 and 2024.   

Farage’s reticence on Brexit is understandable given its failure to deliver anywhere near the benefits he and others said it would. Instead, it has stifled economic growth, made UK borrowing more expensive, and isolated us from our nearest neighbours and allies. That is why during a week in which Farage’s old mate Trump picked a fight with the Pope and likened himself to the son of God, it was good to see Prime Minister Keir Starmer advocating closer economic ties with the EU while acknowledging the “deep damage” Brexit has done to the British economy. 

The government is now planning to use so-called Henry VIII powers, which allows it to amend acts of parliament without facing the scrutiny of MPs, to dynamically align with EU rules including those relating to the single market. Not only does this make perfect economic sense but it has the added benefit of upsetting those who told us Brexit was about “taking back control”.  

Famously cautious on the subject of Europe, Starmer has recently begun talking up the benefits of closer ties with the EU. He’s unlikely to go as far as some in his party demand – London mayor Sadiq Khan wants Labour to go into the next election promising to rejoin the EU – but it’s something. And with polling now showing that nearly 60 per cent of voters think Brexit was a mistake, he’s on increasingly solid ground.  

For all his obvious weaknesses domestically, the prime minister has been strong on international matters. Unlike Farage and Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch who gave their full-throated support to the US / Israeli war with Iran, Starmer has kept the UK out of the morass, alert to the repositioning of strategic alliances which demand stronger cooperation with our nearest – and most dependable – allies in Europe.  

For his part, Trump has become increasingly erratic, promising Iran’s “civilisation will die” one minute only to back down the next and accusing Leo XIV, the first-ever American pontiff, of being “weak on crime” (clearly more of a Julius II guy) while angering his Christian base by posting that aforementioned AI image of himself as Christ only to later delete it. 

Starmer’s rejection of Trump’s war in the Middle East is arguably the most popular thing the Labour leader has done since his party came to power. And yet the prime minister’s unpopularity continues to be a drag on his party’s electoral prospects both in Scotland and the wider UK. He may not get the chance to take his party into another general election, but choosing the same path as Hungary – pulling closer to the EU and rejecting populism at home and abroad – would be a good place to start.