EU's top court finds Hungary's anti-LGBTQ+ law in breach of key values
ECJ says law passed in 2021 is discriminatory and 'contrary to the identity of the union', in early test for new PM
The Guardian - Jennifer Rankin in Brussels
Tue 21 Apr 2026 06.39 EDT
The EU's highest court has found Hungary's anti-LGBTQ+ law to be discriminatory, stigmatising and in breach of basic democratic values, setting up an early test for the incoming government when it takes power next month.
In a wide-ranging judgment, the European court of justice said the 2021 law that bans content about LGBTQ+ people from schools and primetime TV was at odds with a society based on pluralism and fundamental rights, such as prohibition of discrimination and freedom of expression.
The ruling marks the first time the ECJ has found a member state guilty of breaking EU law based exclusively on breaching the bloc's fundamental values described in article 2 of its treaty. These include respect for human dignity, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for fundamental rights, including those of minorities.
The judgment paves the way for future cases against EU member states that systematically flout basic values on democracy and the rule of law.
The court said in a statement that the Hungarian law was "contrary to the very identity of the union as a common legal order in a society in which pluralism prevails", and that Hungary could not "validly rely on its national identity" as justification for a law that breached fundamental values.
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