‘This debate’s rubbish telly, you’re all just sat there in a room talking about stuff!”

The immortal words of a well-known Scottish journalist opining on a European Parliament Committee debate.

The European Parliament, much as I love it, even I would admit that it can be short on spectacle or indeed drama.

Few speeches resonate beyond the Chamber. Perhaps even the exceptionally well-read and well-informed readers of the Sunday National have seldom felt the need to brew a coffee, gather the family together and sit down of an evening to watch a European Parliament debate, I understand.

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I’m also firmly of the view that’s a good thing, if you want drama feel free to tune into Big Brother or Married At First Sight. Politics is not – or at least shouldn’t be – in the immortal words of Frank Zappa, “showbiz for ugly people”.

Politicians are not elected to be TikTok celebrities, media starlets, Instagram influencers or studio sofa pundits, they’re there to be serious people of integrity, weighing issues and making difficult decisions on behalf of the people who temporarily put them there.

There may well be some fluff around the edges and maybe that’s no bad thing, but it is not the job. I’m pretty confident most people out there in the real world want their politicians to be serious, credible and as distant to their lives as possible.

Last week though, there was drama aplenty in Strasbourg and it was not just entertaining – it matters as the integrity and cohesion of the EU itself was under focus.

The EU rotating presidency is held every six months by successive member states, and this six months, Hungary has it.

Since the establishment of the permanent EU presidency full time in Brussels, this in practice is rather more symbolic than effective. It means that a minister from the member state will chair the meetings, often the meetings of the 27 ministers – be it the Fisheries Council or EU Summit – will be held in the member state and the member state civil servants will progress, to a point, the agenda of the state.

Estonia really wanted to push defence, IT stuff and Russian sanctions; Malta was keen on fisheries policy reform, that sort of thing.

I’ll confess I think it is more of a nicety than an effective way to run the bloc, but it remains symbolic that one six months it’s Germany, the next it’s Cyprus, everybody gets an equal shot.

After Hungary is up at the end of this year Poland takes over for the first half of 2025, then Denmark, then Cyprus then Ireland for the latter half of 2026, and so on.

So the present Hungarian government under Viktor Orbán has been problematic for a lot of other EU states.

(Image: PA)

His government has been instrumental in taking a different approach to the war in Ukraine, his approach at home to freedom of speech, judicial reform, civil liberties and protection of minorities has been patchy, and Hungary’s reputation for using EU funds is amongst the worst in the bloc.

The EU is based on the principle of Sincere Co-Operation (note capitals), seldom talked about in UK circles even when we were members, but it is a fundamental principle of the EU that if you agree to join the club you’ll play by the agreed rules.

Otherwise, the club falls down and what’s the point.

The sanction against wayward members is Article 7, whereby the European Parliament can call for suspension of EU funds, voting rights, or even expulsion.

On September 12, 2018, the Parliament approved a motion calling for action against Hungary, alleging breaches of core EU values. It remains stuck in the works while the other member states try to agree what needs done, not least whether the breaches alleged are as bad as claimed.

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The EU has never voted to expel a member and only one has ever left, so the overwhelming pressure is to try and fix the member from within.

At the beginning and end of each presidency, the head of government comes to Strasbourg for a set piece debate with MEPs. At the start, setting out their priorities and what they hope to achieve in the next six months, at the end, a bit of a stock-take on how well they managed. It is a chance for MEPs to call for stuff, quiz the logic for some priorities, argue against others. Usually it is a pretty nuts and bolts affair, but last Wednesday there were some fireworks.

The MEPs didn’t hold back, chiefly my old pal and good friend of Scotland and the UK Green Co-President Terry Reintke.

“I take note of the fact that you have been invited to this parliament in your role as the Council President. Let me tell you, on behalf of my group: You are not welcome here. This is the House of European Democracy, not of corruption, of lies, of propaganda and autocratic rule,” said Reintke. You’ll have had your tea, Big Man.

More significant though to my mind was the contribution of Manfred Weber, leader of the European People’s Party Group, which until 2021, Orban’s Fidesz Party had been a member of. Weber gave it laldy.

“We know Hungary deserves better. Hungarians deserve a strong voice in Europe.

“When Péter Magyar was the first time in the EPP Group meeting, he said the pro-European and pro-rule-of-law-based Hungary is back in the EPP, with seven MEPs.

“Today, [his] Tisza Party is neck and neck with Fidesz in the polls, and I know you’re getting nervous about this.

“But I tell you, just as Pavel defeated Babiš in the Czech Republic, just as Tusk defeated Kaczyński in Poland, Tisza and Péter Magyar will defeat you in Hungary.

“Mr Orbán, you are the past. Péter Magyar is the future.”

A party political broadcast on behalf of the Tisza Party, and watched by an awful lot of people in Hungary seeing their PM being roundly gubbed.

While there’s no desire to see Hungary evicted from the EU – and Hungary and Hungarians are great folks literally at the heart of Europe – the EU structure is pretty effective at making its view known, the checks and balances were clearer this week than usual.