Brussels accused of duplicity as Macron overrides Parliament

A conservative sociologist believes Mr Macron’s decision to enact his unpopular pensions reform by skipping a vote in Parliament shows what the European mainstream really means by the rule of law.

In Magyar Nemzet, Frank Furedi, a professor emeritus at Kent University who now serves as executive director of the Hungarian MCC think tank in Brussels, finds it telling that there is no vocal condemnation within the European Union after President Macron of France raised the retirement age – despite his bill lacking the support of a majority of MPs. The European mainstream, he continues, finds nothing strange in paragraph 49.3 of the French Constitution which makes such a procedure illegal. By contrast, Hungary and Poland are ceaselessly under rule-of-law infringement procedures for much less conspicuous breaches. The real authoritarians, he concludes, must be found in Paris and in Brussels.

Tags: Brussels, Macron, rule of law