EU concerned after Hungary forces Klubradio off air

The European Union is urging Hungary's government to allow a liberal-leaning radio station to continue broadcasting after it went off the air on Monday following a refusal by media authorities to extend its broadcast license.

European Commission spokesman Christian Wigand confirmed that the Commission had officially expressed its concern over Klubradio, a commercial broadcaster in the capital of Budapest.

The station was forced to stop broadcasting a court upheld a decision by Hungary's Media Council not to extend its license.

Wigand said the station’s loss of its broadcasting frequency had occurred on the basis of highly questionable legal grounds, and that Hungary should respect the EU’s charter of fundamental rights, including the rights to freedom of expression, information and the freedom to conduct a business.

The Commission has asked Hungary to take urgent action to ensure that Klubradio can continue using its frequency until final decisions become legally binding, Wigand said.

Hungary has not replied, he added.The loss of Klubradio's broadcasting license has reinvigorated a debate over freedom of the press and outsized political influence in Hungary’s media market.

The station was one of the last radio channels in Hungary that regularly featured opposition politicians and other critical voices during its news and talk programmes, something critics of the government say led to discriminatory decisions by the court and the Media Council.

Klubradio CEO and director Andras Arato called last week's court verdict "shameful," and said the company plans to appeal to Hungary’s highest court, the Curia.