We ask the Polish government to implement the last decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union regarding ending the disciplinary regime for judges, the European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders said in TVN24's "Fakty po Faktach" on Thursday. ""If you want to have the same application of the same EU law in all the member states, you need to apply and implement the decisions of the Court of Justice," he stressed.
The European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders came to Warsaw on Thursday for a two-day visit. He met with the Supreme Audit Office chief Marian Banaś, Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro, and Sejm Speaker Tomasz Grodzki, among others.
On Thursday evening the EU Commissioner was a guest of "Fakty po Faktach" in TVN24. He commented on the situation around the contested Disciplinary Chamber of Poland's Supreme Court. EU top court, the CJEU, has ordered Poland to pay a daily penalty of 1 million euro for not implementing interim measures regarding suspending the controversial chamber.
"If you want to have the same application of the same EU law in all the member states, you need to apply and implement the decisions of the Court of Justice (of the European Union)," the commissioner underscored.
He added that all member states, not the EU Commission, "have said it will the task of the European Court of Justice to give a correct interpretation of the EU law". "And it's what we've asked the Polish government just now - to implement the last decisions of the ECJ, the European Court of Justice, about the end of the disciplinary procedures against the judges," Reynders explained.
He also said that the EU Commission also wants Polish government "to think about a reform to have a real independent body without such disciplainary regime".
Reynders on Morawiecki's "FT" interview: no point using such rhetoric
Didier Reynders was also asked to comment on Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki's October interview for the "Financial Times", in which he accused the EU Commission of making demands of Warsaw "with a gun to our head". Morawiecki also warned that if the EU executive "starts the third world war" by withholding funds for Poland, he would defend the country's rights with "any available weapons".
"I'm coming just to organise a dialogue, and I'm coming with some values, with some principles, but no weapons," Reynders said. "I've tried to engage such a discussion, such a dialogue on the basis of a new instrument that we have now - it's the rule of law report," he added.
"It's very important to engage a discussion, of course with the government, but also with the parliament, majority and the opposition, civil society, the judicial bodies, with all the different partners. We've tried to do that in all the capitals (of the EU member states)," the commissioner explained.
Asked by the show host, Piotr Kraśko, whether Poland was on the verge of war with the EU, Reynders said that "it's not useful to use such kind of rhetoric". "We are in a union and you know we are living in peace, due to the fact tat it was possible since many decades to build the European Union, and then to enlarge he EU to new members," he stressed.
The EU Commissioner for Justice added that "we try also to live in the rule of law and the fundamental rights". "And that's the main goal we're following at the moment. So we don't want to use such kind of rhetoric. What we are trying to do now, is just ask all the member states to fulfil their obligations," Didier Reynders said in TVN24.
Źródło: TVN24 News in English, TVN24