12.09.2025 Strasbourg At September Plenary the European Parliament voted on a non-legislative report entitled “Stock-taking of the European Elections 2024 (reference INI 2025/2012). While presented as a reflection on the conduct of the elections, the text amounts to an attempt by the EU’s political establishment to discredit opposition voices and centralise control over Europe’s democratic processes.

Big support my first @Europarl_EN Report on European 🗳️ 2024:
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🇪🇺 democracy only as strong as our willingness to nurture & defend it.

All pro-European democratic forces have to protect ⚔️ it against internal and external threats – work for 2029 starts now! pic.twitter.com/3F5re3SPAn

— Lubica Karvasova (@LubicaKarvasova) September 11, 2025

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While non-legislative reports are not binding, they are used to float ideas and influence the debate and in this case we can see that the European Parliament’s Committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO) are floating and testing the support they can muster for extremist measures in the future that are clearly anti-democratic.

Professor Emeritus Frank Furedi, Executive Director of MCC Brussels think tank said, “This vote is a warning to all Europeans: democracy cannot be reduced to a single, centralised vision. Respect for national sovereignty, pluralism, and the free exchange of ideas is essential to Europe’s future. Attempts to brand opposition movements as illegitimate or “foreign-sponsored” threaten to erode trust in democracy itself. A healthy Union must welcome – not suppress – the full spectrum of political voices chosen by its citizens.”

The report expresses alarm at the growing strength of Eurosceptic, patriotic, and anti-establishment parties across the Union. Rather than respecting the choices of millions of voters, it dismisses their campaigns as “false” or “foreign-sponsored,” effectively branding legitimate democratic debate as “disinformation.”

This framing undermines free and open political discourse. It reduces complex disagreements about the EU’s future to mere propaganda, delegitimising alternative views and discrediting entire political movements chosen by European citizens.

Censorship and Control of Information
The text openly attacks independent platforms such as X (formerly Twitter) and its owner Elon Musk, holding them responsible for the spread of what it labels “misinformation.” Such rhetoric is a clear warning sign of Brussels’ intention to extend its reach into media and online platforms to silence dissenting voices.
The push to monopolise “truth” under EU institutions risks eroding press freedom and narrowing the space for open, democratic exchange across Europe.

Dangerous Push for Centralisation
Beyond questions of political discourse, the report proposes a sweeping expansion of Brussels’ authority over elections:
Centralised EU voter database: a step towards consolidating control over citizens’ personal data.
EU-funded “information campaigns”: thinly veiled propaganda, funded by taxpayers, to promote pro-EU narratives ahead of future elections.
Single EU election day and harmonised rules: undermining Member States’ right to run their electoral systems in line with their traditions.
Reversal of powers in appointing the Commission President: shifting the balance further towards centralised EU institutions at the expense of national governments.
These measures would drastically weaken Member States’ sovereignty and reduce the diversity of Europe’s democratic traditions.

The Wider Implications
Although the report contains sharp attacks on Hungary, the broader danger lies in its ambition to reshape the entire European political landscape. The majority in the European Parliament is using this opportunity to stigmatise political opposition, control information flows, and expand Brussels’ powers at the expense of citizens’ freedoms.

Europe’s strength lies in its diversity. MCC Brussels calls for a return to genuine respect for democracy, sovereignty, and freedom of thought across the continent.