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I saw, at first hand, the slow erosion of the rule of law in Hungary. It began not with a single shocking act but with quiet legal changes that narrowed space for dissent; each step justified as reasonable or necessary, until suddenly, democracy itself felt like a performance rather than a reality. Watching current developments in the UK, it’s impossible not to feel an uneasy sense of deja vu.
Over the past few years, Britain has introduced a number of laws that have drastically curtailed the right to protest. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 and the Public Order Act 2023 grant police sweeping powers to restrict demonstrations, criminalise peaceful tactics and arrest people on vague grounds that they may have caused serious disruption or unease. Hundreds of arrests have followed, including for slow marching, linking arms, or carrying protest equipment. Many of those arrested have faced prosecution, with courts handing down fines, and in some cases, lengthy imprisonment for peaceful protest activities, reinforcing the chilling effect of these laws.
Officials say these measures are about balance and public order. But the balance has tipped towards control. Protesters and legal observers alike describe confusion about what is lawful, inconsistent police instructions and arbitrary arrests, even when organisers have coordinated with the police in advance. Activists are jailed for actions that only a few years ago would have resulted in a discharge, a fine or a suspended sentence. The result is growing uncertainty and hesitation that discourages people from speaking out or taking to the streets.
This pattern is all too familiar. In Viktor Orbán’s Hungary, authoritarianism has taken root through the steady consolidation of government power. Under the guise of preserving “order” and “safety”, the government has restricted public gatherings and silenced critical voices. Independent institutions, from the judiciary and media regulators to universities and cultural bodies, have been systematically undermined or taken over, ensuring that state power extends into nearly every corner of public life.
Hungary’s experience shows how fragile democracy becomes when legal safeguards erode, and how quickly laws written in neutral language can become instruments of repression. That trajectory should serve as a stark warning to the UK, where shrinking space for protest and dissent threaten democracy. The rule of law depends on legal limits that bind the state itself. When those limits weaken, when vague legislation hands discretion to the executive or to police, the door opens to abuse.
That danger became clear last year in the UK, when the high court ruled that the then home secretary, Suella Braverman, had acted unlawfully by lowering the protest threshold from “serious” to “more than minor” disruption, an attempt to make it easier for police to shut down protests altogether. The Labour government’s decision to defend those same unlawful regulations in court, rather than repeal them, was a troubling signal that across party lines, the instinct to control dissent runs deep.
This creeping expansion of state power has extended far beyond the streets. The proscription of the group Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation marked an alarming new phase, with civil disobedience itself conflated with extremism. UN experts warned that such actions blur the line between legitimate activism and terrorism, echoing authoritarian tactics to stifle opposition under the guise of security.
The UK is not Hungary, but the direction it is taking is alarmingly familiar. Make no mistake, this new authority in the UK may not be wielded by those who promise to use it responsibly. Laws outlast governments. Today’s “anti-disruption” powers could tomorrow be used to suppress strikes, silence journalists, or target minority communities.
The lesson from Hungary is how quickly governments can manipulate the law to serve political ends, and how hard it is to undo that. Legal frameworks that curtail rights rarely stay idle – they are picked up, expanded and weaponised by those who find them convenient.
The UK authorities, including central and local governments, the police and judiciary, can still change course. That means repealing or amending the most repressive elements of recent protest laws, ending the use of no-suspicion or “suspicion-less” stop and search, and committing to full transparency and accountability in how police powers are exercised. Above all, it means recognising that dissent, no matter how disruptive or uncomfortable, is not a threat to democracy but its safeguard.
Freedom of assembly is not a gift governments grant their citizens; it is a right that protects citizens from their governments. Look to Hungary. Britain should not have to learn that lesson the hard way.
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Lydia Gall is a senior Europe researcher at Human Rights Watch
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