It’s official, the European Union has its first dictatorship. This is an existential threat and it could not have come at a worse time. Nonetheless, the EU must deal with this decisively. While the whole of Europe is distracted by the pandemic, Viktor Orban has forced through emergency powers that allow him to ‘rule by decree’.

The new measures include the imposition of a state of emergency on Hungary with no time limits, the suspension of parliament, no elections while the legislation remains in place, individuals who publicise what the government views as ‘fake news’ face up to five years in prison and anyone violating quarantine faces up to eight years.

137 members of the parliament were in favour, 53 against and 9 did not cast a ballot. Hungary’s state secretary, Bence Retvari, told opposition parties that ‘this is an authorisation limited both in time and scope ... as it is solely related to the coronavirus’. But these powers go way beyond what is necessary to fight the virus and could be used to permanently entrench Orban in power.

The context here is key. Orban has been undermining the state’s checks and balances – parliament, the judiciary, the free press, the civil service – for five years. Naturally, it is very difficult to swallow the reassurance that this was all just about the coronavirus when Orban has been building an authoritarian state since he rose to power.