Beyond the Treaties: The EU's Silent Power Grab

The European Union was founded on treaties where member states remain the "masters" of integration. Yet crises - from COVID-19 to energy shortages and migration - are repeatedly used as pretexts to centralize power, shift from voluntary directives to binding regulations, impose shared debt burdens, override national energy mixes, and enforce migration quotas with massive fines. A politicized CJEU whose activist rulings impose primacy over national constitutions, direct effect against states, and implied powers beyond treaties - favouring federalist integration over sovereignty. This "competence creep" erodes democratic rights, sidelines subsidiarity, and threatens the Union's legitimacy. A politicized CJEU whose activist rulings impose primacy over national constitutions, direct effect against states, and implied powers beyond treaties - favouring federalist integration over sovereignty. Our panel will be focusing on what type of EU European citizens want, and how to turn back these processes.

Featured Speakers:

• Boglárka Bólya, Ministerial Commissioner at the Hungarian Ministry of European Union Affairs
• Fr. Mario Portella, Visiting Fellow at the Danube Institute
• Philipp Siegert, Deputy Director of Research at MCC Brussels
  Moderator: Gergely Dobozi, Head of Operations at the Danube Institute

Details:

Date & time: Thursday, March 26, 2026, 5:30 P.M.
Venue: Lónyay-Hatvany Villa, 1 Csónak Street, 1015 Budapest (Entrance: Aranybástya Restaurant)
Gate opens at 5:00 P.M.
Language: English

Participation is free; however, due to limited seating, pre-registration is required by clicking the button below.