EU's Jourova: I will propose EU Commission withdraw Article 7 against Poland

On May 6, the European Commission announced it was ready to end the Article 7 procedure against Poland, adding that EU ministers would have to discuss the issue before it could be officially approved.

Poland's Justice Minister Adam Bodnar on Tuesday (May 21) presented progress in the implementation of his nine-point plan for fixing Polish justice system and restore the rule of law.

At a press conference later that day, Bodnar and EU Commission Vice President Vera Jourova outlined the main conclusions of Tuesday's meeting.

"We were here some time in February when Adam Bodnar presented an action plan and I said I would like to see this action plan fully implemented and to be able to consider the finalization of the Article 7. The day is today. I presented the new assessment of the Commission… of the current situation in Poland," Jourova said on Tuesday in Brussels.

She then listed four key outtakes from the assessment.

"First of all, we see clear determination to correct things and to repair things in the judiciary and prosecution. The second thing, there is a clear recognition in Poland that there is a problem which needs to be repaired.

"The third thing, the recognition of the primacy of EU law and the recognition or respect for the European Court of Justice judgement.

"And the fourth thing I’d like to mention, by finalizing or finishing the Article 7 process for Poland, it does not mean that Poland will not be under any kind of monitoring. We will continue the monitoring under the rule of law report, which an annual exercise and we will publish the next one after the elections.

"So, I think that there are conditions for us to say that the clear breach of the rule of law is no longer the case of Poland.

"That’s why I proposed to the Council to have a discussion today and I announce that in the coming days I plan to propose that the Commission will withdraw the recent proposal which we issued in 2017," the commissioner announced.

"This is an important day for Poland and for Polish citizens because this procedure under Article 7, which cast a shadow on Poland's reputation, is about to end," said Adam Bodnar. He thanked Vera Jourova for "presenting the appropriate proposal and for allowing us to discuss it today at the forum of the Council of the European Union".

"We're not wasting time working on rebuilding the rule of law in Poland. This is a difficult, complicated process. A process that is conditioned by various circumstances," he added.

"We have further legislative stages ahead of us. It has generated significant interest. For example, the separation of the office of the minister of justice from that of the prosecutor general, being one of the reforms that are important from the point of view of the rule of law restoration," he emphasized.

Bodnar also referred to Hungary's opposition to the efforts to withdraw the Article 7 proposal.

"The Hungarian government did not particularly support the European Commission's proposal. However, I would like to remind that the times when Poland and Hungary were building some kind of rule of law institutes - that were supposed to present an alternative interpretation of what the rule of law principle is - are over," he said.

"Of course, there is still a lot to be done. However, the trust has been shown and the commission's proposal confirmed by 26 countries indicates that there is no longer a clear risk of further deepening od the state of lawlessness," the minister added.