European Union

Germany is the largest economy in the European Union, so its economic performance has a significant impact on the entire community, including Hungary. Consequently, for future macroeconomic forecasts to be sufficiently well-founded, whether for Hungary or the EU, it is worth examining how the models worked in the past. The latest analysis by Századvég’s Economic Trends Research Institute compares forecasts for German economic growth with actual GDP data available as of 30 January 2026. The results show that Europe’s largest economy has consistently underperformed market expectations, while the excessive optimism in forecasts has continued to grow compared to the previous year. The structural challenges facing Germany, particularly high energy prices and the decline in manufacturing capacity, have proven to be much more persistent than forecasters had assumed a year ago.

A large majority of Hungarians find it unacceptable that the Ukrainian leadership is sabotaging the restart of the Druzhba pipeline for political reasons, thereby hindering Hungary’s oil supply. Almost two-thirds also disagree with Brussels’ efforts to ban Russian energy.

The proportion of people opposed to nuclear power plants has fallen to a third, while the number of supporters has more than doubled in ten years in the European Union. The most pro-nuclear Member State is Hungary, where 75% support the technology, 22% accept it, and only 3% oppose it.

The 2026 survey in Project Europe, like in previous years, aimed to map public attitudes towards the most important public issues affecting our continent. The latest survey goes beyond a wide range of current issues to focus on the perception of European and national identity, the livelihood challenges Europeans face, and the transformation of social and political processes in the wake of a global system change. Among the catalysts for these processes are the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war, the assessment of the EU leadership’s performance, and the transformation of Europe’s relationship with the major powers.

The Brussels regulation banning Russian oil and gas not only violates EU laws and the sovereignty of Member States but also runs counter to the expectations of Europeans. According to a recent survey by Századvég, the relative majority of EU citizens do not support a total embargo. In Hungary, the rejection rate is 62%.

On 17 February 2026, the Petőfi Literary Museum hosted a conference organised by the Századvég Foundation with the title “What’s the situation? – The West and politics after liberalism”, which focused on the current state of liberalism and the future of the Western political structure.

More than two-thirds of EU citizens believe that the Community’s global competitiveness is declining. The economic downturn is also affecting households’ daily lives: one-third of Europeans are struggling to make ends meet.

Brussels’ misguided sanctions and high carbon taxes have pushed up energy prices on the market, which have been passed on to residential consumers in most Member States. Higher utility costs are causing serious livelihood challenges for a lot of households: right now, one-fifth of Europeans are having trouble paying their heating bills, and more than a quarter are having trouble paying their bills in general. Thanks to the overhead cost reduction policy, Hungarians are the least affected by both indicators.

Brussels imposes the world's highest carbon taxes on EU energy producers, which, combined with its misguided sanctions policy, doubles European prices compared to industrial electricity prices in the US and China. In 2024, an EU power plant had to pay three times as much per ton of carbon dioxide emitted as an American power plant and five times as much as a Chinese energy company. By early 2026, carbon dioxide quotas had broken multi-year records, widening the gap even further.

Brussels would admit Ukraine to the EU as early as 2027, before it has fulfilled the accession criteria. According to a recent survey by Századvég, three quarters of EU citizens reject the initiative. Most of them are concerned that the integration of Ukraine would worsen the situation of EU farmers, increase crime, weaken food safety and reduce development funding.

According to an EU document, an USD 800 billion plan is being prepared for the reconstruction of Ukraine. The programme does not include funds earmarked for armaments, for which Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said the EU would allocate an additional USD 700 billion. From the total financing package of USD 1,500 billion for the coming years, Hungary would provide HUF 5,652.9 billion in the coming years based on the EU allocation principle, which would represent a burden of HUF 1.4 million per average Hungarian household.

The Patriots have submitted a motion of no confidence against the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. 53% of Hungarians have an unfavourable opinion of the German politician, so the Hungarian MEPs who do not support the motion are siding with Brussels against Hungarians.

Although the Brussels elite is pushing for an increase in arms shipments and would like to send soldiers to Ukraine, European citizens do not agree with these efforts. A new survey by Századvég shows that 51% of EU citizens reject the former, while 69% reject the latter.

On 11 November 2025, the European Commission published its first annual report on asylum and migration in Europe, which aims to present the progress made in implementing the new pact on migration and asylum that will come into force in 2026. The long-awaited and delayed report raises more questions than it answers regarding the direction of migration management in the EU. The document covered the three main pillars of the EU’s immigration policy (responsibility, solidarity, and return) without making any significant progress in these areas. It welcomed the 35% drop in illegal border crossings, without pointing out that this drop was due to the restrictive policy applied at the gateway to the Balkans. Furthermore, it ignored Hungary’s contribution, which is essential to reducing the number of illegal border crossings on the Balkan route. In this analysis, we look at these elements of the report in detail.

Brussels would impose a carbon tax on the energy used by European households for heating and cooling and on fuel consumption. The measure would have disastrous consequences: the electricity and gas bills of Hungarians would increase 3.9 times from the current level, which would cost an average household an extra 575,000 forints a year. The price of petrol and diesel would rise above 870 forints per litre, which, along with increased transport costs, would exacerbate inflation.

Almost two-thirds of Europeans are concerned that no one has yet been held accountable for the historic terrorist attack against critical EU infrastructure. The protracted investigation allowed for the spread of theories, often politically motivated, which divided EU citizens’ image of the perpetrator. Half of those who expressed an opinion believe that the Russians blew up the pipeline, 21% believe it was the Americans, and 19% believe it was the Ukrainians.

The relevant committee of the European Parliament would ban imports of Russian gas and oil into the EU from 1 January 2026. The measure would have serious consequences for Hungary: it would lead to gasoline prices above 1,000 forints and a general energy crisis. Two-thirds of Hungarian adults therefore do not support the embargo.

After Brussels’ preparations for war reached a new level, the Tisza Party raised the possibility of reinstating conscription. The move has met with significant public resistance: 80% of Hungarians reject the measure.

Every year, millions of migrants (illegal immigrants, students, workers and new holders of family reunification visas) arrive in Europe, increasing the demand for housing and consequently the cost of housing for European citizens. Most analysts identify a number of factors that have led to the current crisis. However, they agree that migration is a significant factor that has made the situation worse. Ultimately, Europe’s lower and middle classes are bearing the cost of this crisis, while rental property owners are benefiting from rising demand for homes and rising rents. European governments no longer invest in housing and have no strategy for accommodating the millions of migrants arriving in waves since 2015. In this context, rising homelessness and mounting integration challenges are becoming increasingly apparent and serious in major cities across Western Europe. In this analysis, we briefly describe what research has found about the relationship between migration and the housing crisis, and then illustrate the links between migration and the housing crisis using the examples of two countries: the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.