F1 sponsor faces trouble in Budapest
So my question for the nationalists that have seized control of the UK is: what symbols would you like to see banned here? Presumably anything including a circle of stars, the € symbol, or anything that might suggest the UK is located just off mainland Europe will have to go. Are we still okay with keeping the blue parts of our flag given the Scots aren't toeing the party line? What about the coat of arms? All those French words might give people the idea we have some kind of shared history with the continent, which as we know is a fake fact.
There could be trouble brewing for F1 sponsor Heineken following a decision by the Hungarian government to ban the Dutch beer's red star logo on the grounds that it is a Communist symbol.
The Hungarian government last month voted to ban all totalitarian symbols from use in the country, which has seen a political shift to the right in recent years. While the focus of the ban was ostensibly on far-right imagery associated with Nazism and fascism, left-wing symbols including the hammer and sickle and the red star of Communism have also been banned in the "interests of domestic public order and public morality".
Heineken has been warned that if they do not change their branding in the Hungarian market that they could face millions of euros in fines, plus the prospect of jail terms for Heineken executives in the country.
The Hungarian government last month voted to ban all totalitarian symbols from use in the country, which has seen a political shift to the right in recent years. While the focus of the ban was ostensibly on far-right imagery associated with Nazism and fascism, left-wing symbols including the hammer and sickle and the red star of Communism have also been banned in the "interests of domestic public order and public morality".
Heineken has been warned that if they do not change their branding in the Hungarian market that they could face millions of euros in fines, plus the prospect of jail terms for Heineken executives in the country.
"Naturally, the red Heineken star has no political meaning whatsoever and we use the same brand symbols across the world, in every market," the brewer said in a statement. "We will closely monitor this local matter, and hope and trust that this matter will be resolved soon."
The general consensus among industry experts is that the ban on political symbols is less to do with any sense of public order or decency, and is instead a form of political protectionism designed to provide a favourable operating environment for Hungarian businesses. Viktor Orban, the right-leaning prime minister of Hungary, rose to power on a wave of promises linked to 'economic patriotism' and what he called a 'moral obligation' to protect Hungarian business in an increasingly globalised world.
The general consensus among industry experts is that the ban on political symbols is less to do with any sense of public order or decency, and is instead a form of political protectionism designed to provide a favourable operating environment for Hungarian businesses. Viktor Orban, the right-leaning prime minister of Hungary, rose to power on a wave of promises linked to 'economic patriotism' and what he called a 'moral obligation' to protect Hungarian business in an increasingly globalised world.
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