“Polish can and will not pay”

On Thursday, October 28, the Polish Minister of Justice assessed that his country should not pay the fines imposed by the European Justice Department under the controversial judicial reform and closure of a lignite mine.

Read moreRule of law: Poland ordered to pay 1 million euros a day

⁇In the case of illegal sanctions against Turów (…) or sanctions for changes in the judicial system, Poland cannot and should not pay a slot.Zbigniew Ziobro told reporters. On Wednesday, the European Court of Justice (CJEU) imposed a fine of one million euros a day on Poland for failing to comply with one of its rulings, ordering an immediate halt to its proceedings on July 14. Regulatory Chamber of the Supreme Court of Poland. This organization, which is responsible for overseeing Polish judges, has the power to raise their immunity to expose them to criminal prosecution or reduce their salaries.

Tensions escalated over the fine

Warsaw and Brussels have been at loggerheads for years over judicial reforms put in place by the Conservative Nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) -led government. Brussels believes the reforms are an impediment to democratic freedom, but Poland says they are necessary to eradicate corruption among the judiciary. In September, a European court ordered Poland to pay a daily fine of 500,000 euros for failing to close a large lignite mine in neighboring the Czech Republic.

These fines run the risk of exacerbating the crisis between the EU and Poland, which the Constitutional Court questioned earlier this month on the primacy of social law. The controversy was on the menu at last week’s EU summit, in which Polish Prime Minister Mathews Moraviki called his country “Ready for conversation“But I will not act”Under the pressure of threat. ”He then accused the EU of pointing the finger.Gun to the templeFrom Poland by threatening sanctions.

Read moreRule of law: Europeans want to avoid escalating with Poland

Many capitals, for their part, consider the approval of the 36 36 billion Polish stimulus package untenable, which is currently blocked by the Commission seeking guarantees for the independence of the judiciary.