The independence of the Polish judiciary and EU law have long hampered relations between Poland and the EU.
The Polish Parliament has decided to abolish the supervisory body that examined the judges of the Supreme Court, whose judges were elected on political grounds.
The decision was voted on yesterday, Thursday, and it divided decision-makers. The result of the vote in the House of Commons was 231–208 and 13 abstentions.
The abolition of the oversight body was supported by the ruling coalition, while the opposition opposed it, saying the changes were largely cosmetic.
President Andrzej Duda made a bill to abolish the supervisory body in February. The background to the proposal is EU intervention.
Poland intends to set up a new supervisory body
In October, the European Court of Justice ordered Poland to pay fines of one million euros a day for violations of the rule of law. The EU Commission has also frozen corona subsidies for Poland.
According to the Commission, Poland has undermined the independence of its national judiciary.
The abolition of the supervisory body is in line with the Union’s wishes, but its impact is likely to be short-lived. The oversight body is to be replaced by a new oversight body for the “professional responsibility” of judges, the members of which will be elected by the president.
The Polish government still expects the EU to now recover the € 36 billion in corona subsidies frozen because of the controversy. The passage of the new legislation still requires the approval of the Senate of the Polish Parliament and the President.
The weakening of the judiciary is affecting society as a whole
The independence of the Polish judiciary and EU law have long hampered relations between Poland and the EU. The Polish government has decision-making power over the country’s judiciary, which means that the judiciary is not completely independent.
Judge of the Helsinki District Court, who visited Poland in October and was interviewed by Antti Heikinheimon According to him, the biggest problem is the appointing body of judges set up by the current administration. The nominating body has allowed the ruling party to appoint loyal judges.
Heikinheimo also saw the abolished supervisory body as problematic.
The risk is that if the judiciary is weakened, the possibility of corruption will increase. At the same time, citizens’ faith in the judiciary is shaken, which has implications for Polish society as a whole.
You can discuss the topic on 28.5. until 11 p.m.