CER Outlines Funds Budapest Can Access After EUCO Decision

Camino Mortera at the Centre for European Reform think tank outlines the decisions made by the European Council on funding that Hungary will and will not be able to access over the coming months:

• "Yesterday night, EU economy and finance ministers decided to: Approve Hungary’s national recovery plan (ca. € 5.9 bn) [and] Freeze 55 per cent of three cohesion fund programmes to Hungary ( € 6.3 bn). The European Commission had advised to freeze 65 per cent (€ 7.5 bn)."
• "One often overlooked element of this story is that Hungary will be able to access cohesion funds as soon as it shows it has effectively implemented corrective measures. It can do that at any time over the next two years [...]"
• "Conversely, Hungary will not be able to access any recovery money until it complies with a series of 'super milestones' (i.e., some more corrective measures on anti-corruption, independence of the judiciary and watchdogs etc.). 'Super milestones' and corrective measures overlap. I am not sure the story here is that vetoes work. I think it is a case of very different political dynamics between the different institutions, and an overall hardening over rule of law matters."