Questioning Europe: Eurosceptic and Populist Use of European Parliamentary Questions by Hungarian MEPs

The relationship between Hungary’s ruling party and the European Union (EU) has been characterized by a rather contentious narrative, oscillating between pragmatic cooperation and sharp Eurosceptic criticism. In fact, Hungary’s government, under the leadership of Fidesz, has publicly criticized the EU for its alleged encroachment on national sovereignty domestically, and Viktor Orbán has claimed multiple times to attempt to change the EU from within. This study looks at the party’s MEPs and analyzes their use of European Parliamentary Questions to analyze to what extent the government’s Eurosceptic and populist stances / attitudes are conveyed or contradicted within this institutional setting by the party’s representatives. The use of the questions serves as a unique lens to scrutinize Eurosceptic and populist attitudes, shedding extra light on how such attitudes manifest in the EU’s institutional framework. While previous studies have analyzed speeches and voting behavior, this study breaks new ground by using MEP questions, which may reflect strategic agenda-setting priorities, institutional skepticism, and even de-legitimizing efforts. With this, it provides an interesting opportunity to study the interplay between rhetoric and institutional behavior: if Fidesz MEPs genuinely aim to transform the EU, one might expect constructive, reform-oriented questions. Conversely, if the questions primarily serve as a platform for antagonistic Eurosceptic and populist narratives, this could indicate a broader strategy of delegitimizing the EU. Theoretically, the research contributes to the growing literature on polity-based Euroscepticism, and also intersects with studies on Eurosceptic populism. By assessing both the tone and thematic content of MEP questions, the study seeks to uncover how populist narratives may interweave with institutional criticism. Empirically, the study looks at the period from 2009 to 2024, and represents the first systematic analysis of MEP questions to explore Euroscepticism and populism, offering new insights into the Hungarian ruling party’s approach toward the EU. Through this exercise, the paper may enhance our understanding of how Eurosceptic and populist parties instrumentalize EU platforms to advance their narratives to question the legitimacy of the EU and future integration. By focusing on the MEP questions, the study delves into the micro-dynamics of how Hungary’s ruling party operationalizes its EU strategies which may help our understanding of how tensions between a nationalist populist agenda and supranational governance plays out. Methodologically, the research employs both quantitative and qualitative text analysis to detect trends and frequencies in question topics and targeted institutions, and to uncover nuances in language and framing. The dataset used comprises all MEP questions submitted by Fidesz MEPs between 2009 and 2024 categorized by institutional addressees (President of the European Council, Council of the EU, Commission), and policy domain. The paper also studies the potential impact of the shift in Fidesz’s EP affiliations over the studied period on the MEPs questions.