Head of Orbán-linked Brussels thinktank quits over unpaid wages

The head of Viktor Orbán’s favourite Brussels thinktank has quit, citing unpaid wages since the change of government in Hungary.

The sociology professor Frank Furedi said he was resigning as the executive director of MCC Brussels with “immediate effect” on Monday over “persistent failure to provide the contractually agreed funds”.

A spokesperson for MCC Brussels confirmed Furedi’s resignation and said no one working for the organisation in the EU capital had been paid in July or August.

MCC Brussels launched in late 2022 with a self-styled mission to shake up political debate in the EU capital, although critics said it defended Orbán’s illiberal rule in Hungary while using a well-funded position to attack civil society groups.

It was an ostensibly independent offshoot of the Mathias Corvinus Collegium Foundation in Budapest, a training ground for Orbán’s Fidesz party that was lavishly funded by his rightwing nationalist government.

The future of MCC Brussels was thrown into doubt when Péter Magyar won a landslide election victory in April pledging to crack down on corruption in Hungary, which numerous independent organisations said had proliferated during Orbán’s 16 years in power. Soon after his victory, Magyar promised to end state financing for MCC Budapest and to investigate a large transfer of state assets to the organisation, which he described as a crime.

Furedi has previously dismissed Magyar’s claims of a criminal transfer of assets to MCC Budapest as “bullshit”, while MCC Brussels said it condemned corruption by all politicians.

In a letter to the senior leadership of MCC Budapest seen by the Guardian, Furedi wrote: “Without the contractually agreed resources, our colleagues cannot function and are facing serious economic hardship. We have been placed in a situation where our individual reputations and the integrity of our intellectual mission are systematically undermined.”

The failure to provide funds, Furedi said, meant MCC Brussels had effectively ceased operations and was unable to pay suppliers or meet conditions under Belgian insolvency law.

Furedi said he intended to ensure, “along with like-minded individuals, the work and intellectual legacy of our institution will continue to flourish in another form”, without elaborating on future plans.

The letter was first reported by Politico. MCC Budapest did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

MCC Budapest has also seen change at the top following the election of the new government. The MCC board was previously led by Viktor Orbán’s chief of staff, Balázs Orbán, who is no relation to the former prime minister. Balázs Orbán, now an MP for the Fidesz party, announced he was standing down as chair in June.

The MCC Brussels spokesperson said after Furedi’s resignation and a round of lay-offs in June and July, MCC Brussels was down to 12 staff and three research fellows. Before the cuts it had employed 25 people and was one of the best-funded thinktanks in Brussels.