On 8 March 2013, in a letter to the European commission, Guido Westerwelle, the German foreign minister, and counterparts in Denmark, the Netherlands and Finland called for the European Union to be given new powers allowing it to freeze EU budget funds to a member state in breach of Europe's "fundamental values." On the same day, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso too expressed concerns to Prime Minister Viktor Orban over the amendment vote in Hungary's parliament next week to change the constitution, arguing it contravenes EU rules in areas such as the judiciary.