European Union launches disciplinary action against Poland over judicial reforms

Polish President Andrzej Duda vetoed two of these bills, which concerned the National Council of Judiciary and the Supreme Court, but reintroduced them once amended.

He said Poland needs to continue with it, and that Poland ‘will only be a significant European Union member when it has a well-functioning justice system’.

Poland has arguably violated the rule of law principle by pushing through a reform of the judiciary that has been criticised for putting the Polish courts under the control of the PiS. “But the facts leave us with no choice”, Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans told reporters.

Asked if Mrs May’s visit should be seen as an “endorsement” of the Polish government, the spokesman added: ‘We have a strong bilateral relationship with Poland. It quickly began passing legislation limiting the powers of the courts and strengthening the executive branch.

Firstly, the independence of the judiciary is a value that reflects the concept of European democracy.

However, the commission said it could rescind its decision if Warsaw implements a list of proposed remedies within three months.

The sanctions can involve the suspension of “the rights deriving from the application of the Treaties to the Member State in question, including the voting rights”. Brussels is confident it has those votes, The Guardian notes. If it does not it could ultimately lose its voting rights on the European Council.

What’s left are the old wartime memories – which many Poles remember very differently than the Brits, seeing the alliance as one that betrayed Poland when the war broke out and then handed the country over to the Russians once the fighting ended – and the mixed legacy of their shared time in the EU. A majority of States (including France and Germany) support Brussels approach. The bloc has pledged to deliver a total of 229 billion euros ($271 billion) in aid to Poland through 2021.

“We’re in a crisis which I hope is transitory”.

The decision to discipline Poland – backed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron – underscores the erosion of trust between the EU’s largest states and some of its eastern members just as the bloc prepares to enter into talks about trade after Brexit and its leadership emphasizes the importance of sticking together.

Two additional laws have been passed by parliament and still await the signature of the president. But Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal posed a possible check on the party’s power. The Commission’s decision underlines rather than provokes this process.

Poland’s government, which has carried on with an overhaul of its court system despite two years of warnings from the European Union, took the decision in stride.

The Czech prime minister, Andrej Babis, phoned his Polish counterpart Mateusz Morawiecki to say he was “convinced” that the commission’s action “stems from a lack of communication” and that sanctions would “have a negative impact on the whole region”.

“Kaczynski’s twin brother, Jaroslaw, now happens to be the most powerful man in Poland”.

Poland’s governing Law and Justice Party is trying to push a number of reforms created to remove leftover judges from the communist regime.

The perception that the European Union is going in a direction which is at odds with Polish interests is gaining ground for reasons beyond its “inteference” in the judicial reforms.

Once adopted, the measure has two parts-a preventative mechanism and a sanctioning mechanism.

Protests continued into December.

Poland, the birthplace of Eastern Europe’s pro-democracy movement in the 1980s, has always been praised as a role model for its transition from communism.

“The procedure carries a number of risks”.

There was no immediate comment on the EU’s prospect of punitive action against Poland.