Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban told leaders of the EU's centre-right political group on Saturday that he would comply with demands from Brussels to change measures branded an attack on academic freedom, the party said. "Prime Minister Orban committed himself in the EPP council to follow and implement all the demands of the European Commission within the deadline set by the Commission," Siegfried Muresan, the European People's Party spokesman, told reporters after Orban was grilled by fellow party leaders in Brussels. An Orban spokeswoman declined to say what Orban had told the meeting, called to clear the air within the conservative bloc, whose members include German Chancellor Angela Merkel. EPP President Joseph Daul, whose group has considered in the past suspending Orban's ruling Fidesz party over concerns about its respect for democratic values, said in a statement: "The EPP demanded from Fidesz and from the Hungarian authorities that they take all necessary steps to comply with the Commission's request. Prime Minister Orban has reassured the EPP that Hungary will act accordingly," Daul said. On Wednesday, the EU executive gave Budapest a month to adapt a higher education law passed on April 4, saying it was not compatible with the fundamental internal market freedoms. Orban defended himself in the European Parliament that day and condemned his former ally, Hungarian-born U.S. financier George Soros, as a "speculator". The Soros-backed Central European University in Budapest has said the new law is aimed at closing it down as part of a plan to discourage liberal thought. "We were very clear today that we cannot accept any attack on this inside the EPP family," Manfred Weber, the EPP's leader in the European Parliament, told reporters after the meeting. Weber stressed that Orban's engagement with the party was in his favour, in contrast to Poland's ruling party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski who also faces complaints from the EU executive that he is breaching European democratic standards: But he added: "The measures in Budapest are not acceptable. Academic freedom must be guaranteed. So after this discussion the ball is in his court. If he reacts properly, then he is a team player. If not, there will be consequences."
