The European Commission welcomed an “action plan” of legal reforms presented by the Polish minister of Justice to the representatives of the 27 member states in Brussels on Tuesday, February 20th. It detailed how the new liberal government is preparing to dismantle and rebuild the country’s judicial system, ending the Polish rule-of-law dispute.
Accepting the plan unblocks €111 billion worth of EU funds, previously frozen due to the alleged wrongdoings of the previous conservative government. Critics of EU ‘lawfare’ see this as a further example of Brussels’ partisan conduct.
It seems that now the conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party has been replaced by Donald Tusk’s liberal coalition, the EU is ready to turn a blind eye to any and all constitutional violations. It is even feeding into the narrative that the unlawful elimination of political opponents is what actually restores the rule of law.
“I am … deeply determined to restore constitutional order in Poland and solve the rule-of-law crisis that has led to the Article 7 procedure,” Polish Justice Minister Adam Bodnar said. “Poland will be one of the leading members of the EU again.”
Also participating in the meeting, Values and Transparency Commissioner Věra Jourová and Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders welcomed reform proposals and encouraged Warsaw to undertake them as soon as possible.
“I very much welcome … the determination of the new Polish government,” Jourová said, calling the action plan “realistic.”
“Since the new government took office, it has shown a clear commitment to restore the rule of law in the country,” Reynders added.
Both Warsaw and Brussels aim to conclude the years-long infringement procedure against Poland in just a few months, before the end of the Belgian Council presidency. The decision to unblock the first tranches of frozen funds can happen in as little as a few weeks, Didier said.
In July, the rotating presidency goes to Hungary—the only other country with an open rule-of -law procedure and the biggest ally of the Law and Justice in Europe—which might explain the rush to exonerate Poland under its supposedly liberal administration.
At the end of last month, Warsaw already submitted its self-assessment on completing several key judicial reforms that should unblock up to €76 billion worth of funds if the Commission’s assessment also greenlights it. The remaining €35 billion in pandemic recovery funds needs further reforms—ones that Tusk’s Civic Coalition is happy to undertake, as it will further secure its grip on the judicial system.
Immediately after being sworn in, the new government began to purge conservatives (and anyone associated with PiS) from the media, administration, and courts, going so far as jailing two former ministers on clearly politically motivated charges that date back to 2007. Meanwhile, Brussels willfully enables the hostile takeover of institutions by endorsing these “reforms” including the removal of all remaining judicial personnel who were appointed under the previous government.
Tuesday’s hearing in Brussels and the Commission’s official encouragement of the ongoing power grab in Warsaw only highlights the apparent hypocrisy in the heart of the rule-of-law debate.
“When somebody who is [the Commission’s] friend, like Donald Tusk, is breaking every possible rule and law, but it’s somebody that they like, then it’s okay, no questions raised,” Hungarian MEP Balázs Hidvéghi told The European Conservative recently. “If a conservative government does something completely legally—according to law and the constitution—they’re attacked, nevertheless. It’s a completely discredited discourse here in Brussels about the rule of law.”
