London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 09, 2025

Hungary 'has no place in the EU anymore,' Dutch leader says

Hungary 'has no place in the EU anymore,' Dutch leader says

Hungary "has no place" in the European Union after passing a controversial new bill banning LGBTQ content in schools, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Thursday.
Earlier this month Hungary's parliament passed legislation which bans all educational materials and programs for children which are considered to promote homosexuality, gender reassignment and the concept of sexuality deviating from the one assigned to a person at birth.

The move prompted intense criticism from human rights groups and opposition parties. On the day it passed, crowds gathered in Budapest outside the parliament to protest the bill.

The legislation is one of a string of divisive policies championed by Hungarian leader Victor Orban, a hardline nationalist who has previously railed against LGBTQ people and immigrants.

"For me, Hungary has no place in the EU anymore," Rutte told journalists before attending an EU summit in Brussels alongside Orban.

He added: "But, unfortunately, in the system that we have, I can't do it on my own, but [with] 26 other member states saying: 'you have to leave. This has to happen step by step and, in the meantime, you hope that they will adapt."

As he arrived for the summit, Orban strongly defended the new legislation.

"It's not about homosexuals, it's about the kids and the parents," he said.

"I am a fighter for the rights. I am a freedom fighter in the communist regime," Orban continued.

"Homosexuality was punished and I fought for their freedom and their rights. So I am defending the rights of the homosexual guys, but this law is not about that. It's about the right of the kids and the parents."

On Tuesday, 14 out of 27 EU countries expressed their "deep concern" at the law in a joint declaration initiated by Belgium.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also denounced the bill

Speaking during a press conference in Brussels on Wednesday, Von der Leyen said the bill "clearly discriminates against people on the basis of their sexual orientation."

"It goes against all the values, the fundamental values of the European Union, and this is human dignity, it is equality, and is the human fundamental rights," she said.

Von der Leyen said she had instructed EU Commissioners to write to the Hungarian authorities expressing the EU's concern over the bill before it comes into force.

Hungary has passed similar legislation before.

In December 2020 the country's parliament voted to redefine the concept of "family" in the country's constitution, a move which effectively bars same sex couples from adopting children. That too was met with outcry from human rights groups.

Asked on Thursday whether he would withdraw the latest bill, Orban responded: "The law is already announced, it's published, and it's done."

Orban also claimed that European politicians who oppose the law didn't read it.

"Always better to read first, then criticize later," he said.

"I am not against homosexuality," he added. "The law is about to decide what kind of way parents would like to sexually educate their kids, [with that right] exclusively belonging to the parents."

Asked if he wished to talk about it during the summit, he responded: "It's not on the agenda."

"I am at the disposal of anybody who has respected Hungary in a way to ask me about a new law," he said.

Orban faces an election next year. His Fidesz party promotes a Christian-conservative agenda.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
A Dollar Coin Featuring Trump’s Portrait Expected to Be Issued Next Year
Australia Orders X to Block Murder Videos, Citing Online Safety and Public Exposure
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
×