According to Hungary's Fundamental Law, the National Assembly is Hungary's main representative and legislative body. With the accession to the EU on 1 May 2004, certain legislative powers were transferred to the institutions of the European Union (European Commission, Council of the EU, European Parliament), and the law of the European Union became part of the Hungarian legal system. This transfer of powers does not mean a waiver of competences, but the joint exercise of legislative powers with the other EU Member States.
Chapter VI of Act XXXVI of 2012 on the National Assembly (Act) regulates the procedures and powers of the National Assembly in the conduct of European Union affairs. Articles 139 to 145 of the Rules of Procedure (RoP) supplement the provisions of the Act and set out the details of the procedures. The national parliaments of EU Member States are not directly involved in EU decision-making, but a number of procedures have been developed over the past decades through which the legislative body can influence EU legislation.
Article 62 of the Act, on the exercise of parliamentary competencies, states that the National Assembly may also exercise its powers of scrutiny over the activities of the Government in the institutions of the European Union, as defined in Chapter VI, through a parliamentary committee. The standing committee on European Affairs of the National Assembly shall have the power to decide on cases in the procedures laid down in Chapter VI. The Committee on European Affairs (hereinafter referred to as CEA) is a standing committee of the National Assembly which is mandatory to be set up.
The CEA conducts the following procedures related to the EU under the Act:
• the scrutiny procedure;
• examining the principle of subsidiarity;
• political dialogue with the European Commission;
• participation in the work of the Consultative Body on European Union Affairs;
• hearings of candidates for EU posts.
In the scrutiny procedure, the CEA has the power to decide on cases. The procedure's purpose is for the Government, in cooperation with the CEA, to formulate the Hungarian negotiating position on the EU drafts selected by the CEA, and to monitor the Government's (legislative) activities in the Council. Since the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, national parliaments of EU Member States have been able to directly involve themselves in EU decision-making through two procedures: the reasoned opinion adopted as a result of the subsidiary check and the so-called political dialogue opinion. The principle of subsidiarity always requires decisions to be taken at the lowest possible level; and under the Act and the RoP, the CEA performs the tasks related to subsidiarity control in the National Assembly and has the exclusive right of initiative.
The National Assembly also performs a monitoring role in EU affairs, and one of its important tasks is to have the Government report on its work. Parliamentary instruments (interpellations, questions, committee hearings, parliamentary debates) can also be applied in EU affairs.
Section 69 of the Act also defines other cases of the Government's duty to provide information. These include the fact that the Consultative Body on European Union Affairs provides an opportunity, with the participation of the Prime Minister, for the discussion of issues on the agenda of the European Council meetings and the Hungarian position to be represented. Similar discussions may be held on other EU political events of strategic importance (e.g. diplomatic summits). Following European Council meetings, the Prime Minister may speak outside of the agenda of the sitting of the National Assembly or the Government may inform the Committee on European Affairs on the outcome of the meeting.
The Government shall inform the CEA orally on an annual basis on issues related to Hungary's membership of the European Union and the state of European integration. The National Assembly's monitoring rights also include a provision under which the National Assembly may hear the persons proposed by the Government as Hungarian members of the European Commission, the Court of Justice of the European Union, the General Court, the European Court of Auditors and the Board of Directors of the European Investment Bank.
The interparliamentary cooperation within the European Union (see in detail under item Interparliamentary cooperation in the European Union) has several key forums, in which the Hungarian National Assembly is an active participant. The National Assembly also liaises with the European Parliament. Pursuant to Act LVII of 2004 on the Legal Status of Hungarian Members of the European Parliament, the National Assembly maintains relations with Hungarian MEPs, who are granted special rights by this Act to participate in the work of the National Assembly. Following Hungary's accession to the European Union, the Office of the Permanent Representative of the Hungarian National Assembly to the European Union in Brussels was opened on 1 September 2004 to facilitate the flow of information and coordination with the European Parliament and other EU institutions.
The National Assembly also collaborates with the European Commission. In addition to cooperation on the subsidiarity check and political dialogue, exchanges of views with the EU Commissioners are of particular importance, both in interparliamentary meetings and in the National Assembly. The European Commission also holds regular consultations with members of the Hungarian National Assembly in the context of the annual rule of law reports.
