Commission clears Várhelyi of wrongdoing after spying probe

Health Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi has been cleared of wrongdoing after an internal European Commission investigation examined allegations of a potential spy ring operating out of Hungary’s mission in Brussels while he was serving as its head.

“The Commission has concluded that no serious security breach could be identified in relation to the allegations appearing in the media,” Commission spokesperson Balazs Ujvari told journalists on Friday.

Ujvari did not disclose how the investigation had been conducted but stressed that “all the relevant aspects were looked at over the course of the past seven months”.

However, the Commission did caveat its findings, saying it was not possible to attribute responsibility “with the tools that we have at our disposal within the Commission”.

The Commission opened an internal investigation after media reports in October that a former Hungarian diplomat had allegedly sought to recruit EU officials to spy on behalf of Budapest while working at Hungary’s EU embassy in Brussels on cohesion policy. Várhelyi was the Hungarian ambassador at the time.

Belgian police have not opened an investigation into the matter.

While progressive MEPs called for the commissioner to resign, Várhelyi denied the allegations.

“I am surprised that the Commission has managed to give Varhelyi a clean bill of health in this regard,” said German Green MEP Daniel Freund in reaction to Friday’s announcement.

“I would have waited three more days until the new government in Hungary had taken office – Budapest might have been able to provide some further insight.”

After centre-right opposition leader Péter Magyar’s victory in Budapest, Várhelyi was uncertain to keep his job. He was an appointee of outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and a second-time commissioner.

Yet, Magyar’s own political allies in the pan-European EPP group have vowed to keep Várhelyi in his current job.

A spokesperson for Varhleyi declined to comment.

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