President Áder sends political billboard act back to parliament

President János Áder has returned a recent law that sought to restrict political advertisements to parliament for re-consideration.

The legislation, passed with a simple majority on Wednesday, was part of a government bill which sought to prevent all political advertisements on billboards outside of the official campaign period.

Stipulations of the law which required a two-thirds majority had failed in Wednesday’s vote.

In his letter to parliament, Áder said the law did not establish a legal norm while it contained passages which were either controversial or could not be interpreted or implemented. He called on parliament to re-consider it in its entirety.

“Hungary is an independent and democratic state governed by the rule of law and a fundamental requirement is legal certainty,” Áder said, adding that legal texts should be clear and reasonable, expressing “recognisable” norms for legal application.