Euronews has learned that 35 members of the European Parliament have called on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to urge Hungarian Commission President Oliver Vahely to resign.
The letter, dated Thursday and seen by Euronews, was signed by MPs from four political groups: S&D, Renew, the Green Party/EFA and the Left.
Mr Varhelyi, who is in charge of the health and animal welfare portfolio, came into the spotlight after a joint investigation by several European news organizations alleged that Hungary’s foreign intelligence services allegedly used the Hungarian Permanent Mission in Brussels as a platform to spy on EU institutions and recruit staff between 2012 and 2018.
These operations are said to have been carried out in part while Varhelyi served as Hungary’s ambassador to the EU in Brussels from 2015 to 2019.
The European Commission’s chief spokesperson said Ms von der Leyen had discussed the allegations with Mr Verhelyi, who said he had no knowledge of any recruitment activity taking place while in charge of the mission.
The members of Congress who signed the letter believe that if the revelations turn out to be true, their credibility in Chairman Vaheli will be severely eroded.
They called on von der Leyen to: Article 17 The Treaty on European Union allows the chairperson to force commissioners to resign.
The MEPs’ request echoes a call from more than 60 academics from across the EU who are part of the Good Lobby Professors Network.
The group said the alleged activities around Vaheli appeared to be fundamentally inconsistent with the principle of independence required of all commissioners, who must act solely in the general interest of the EU and not in the interests of member states.
The European Parliament does not have the power to demand the resignation of a single member, but can only trigger a vote of no confidence in the European Commission as a whole. Tried 3 times In the last few months.
But Congressional sources say lawmakers may approve a resolution calling for the chief’s resignation.