The Constitutional Court of Poland decided that the fines imposed by the EU contradict the countryʼs constitution.
This is reported by Reuters.
In its interim ruling, the EU court imposed fines of hundreds of millions of euros on Poland in two separate court cases.
Poland had to pay hundreds of millions of euros in fines in two cases in which the European Court of Justice imposed interim measures, one over a dispute with the Czech Republic over the “Turiv” coal mine and the other through the Disciplinary Chamber of Judges.
What is it about?
In 2019, Poland adopted a judicial reform that, according to the decision of the EU court, contradicts European law, because the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court, which appeared as a result of the implementation of the reform, is empowered to dismiss and prosecute judges "who do not meet the requirements of independence and impartiality."
In 2021, the Czech Republic accused Poland of the fact that due to the expansion of the Turiv coal mine in the border areas, the groundwater level dropped sharply. The court sided with Prague and ordered Poland to stop production at the mine until the matter is resolved on the merits and to pay a fine. At the beginning of February 2022, Poland and the Czech Republic announced that they had reached an agreement on the Turiv mine.
- The supremacy of European law over national legislation is one of the founding principles of the EU.
- Poland has long been at odds with the EU over a series of controversial laws that limit the independence of the judiciary, media freedom and LGBT rights. Since 2017, the Polish government has been accused of appointing its own proteges to the Constitutional Court, and taking control of the Supreme Court with the help of the Disciplinary Chamber, which can fire dissenting judges.
- In 2021, the Constitutional Court of Poland declared unconstitutional some clauses of the EU treaties, in particular the principle of supremacy of EU law over Polish laws.