EU fines against Poland's 'rule of law' dispute surpass €160m

The European Commission says fines imposed on Poland for its refusal to scrap a controversial disciplinary mechanism for judges had crossed €160 million, and would be cut from the EU budget allocation for Poland.

EU says Poland fines over rule of law row will cost the country more thhan €160 million. © Omar Marques/Getty Images

The fines stem from the European Union's accusation that Warsaw's conservative government had undermined judicial independence and rolled back democratic norms.

The EU Commission said Tuesday that the first tranche of EU funds totalling €69 million has already been deducted and a further €42 million would be cut by mid-May.

In October, the European Court of Justice hit Poland with a fine of one million euros per day for refusing to suspend a national Supreme Court chamber contested by Brussels.

#RuleOfLaw

🇪🇺@EU_Commission asks @EUCourtPress to impose daily fines on 🇵🇱 Poland until all steps have been taken to fully comply with the interim measures ordered by the Court of Justice to protect judicial independence.

Press release: https://t.co/dLNShqrA9K pic.twitter.com/dzDpcJIzwQ

— EU Justice (@EU_Justice) September 7, 2021

Proposal to scrap controversial law

Poland's President Andrzej Duda has since proposed a law to scrap the Supreme Court chamber in the hope of drawing a line under the dispute.

However the changes still have to be approved by Polish lawmakers, and legal observers have queried whether it is merely a rebranding exercise.

According to EU justice commissioner Didier Reynders: "The fact that there seems to be a momentum towards reforming the disciplinary regime for judges in Poland is a positive step."Yet, what will eventually matter is the extent to which the legislation ... will address the requirements set out by the Court of Justice."

Fines for production of 'dirty coal'

Poland has also been hit by another EU fine for refusing to close a coal mine.

The EU had imposed the fine of €500,000 a day last September for refusing to comply with an order to close its Turow mine producing lignite, or brown coal.

Poland's neighbours, the Czech Republic and Germany, had complained of environmental damage from the mine, including groundwater pollution as well as dust and noise.

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