Poland, Hungary object to EU rule of law budget mechanism

WARSAW: Poland and Hungary on Thursday filed complaints with the EU's top court over linking EU budget payments to rule of law conditions, meaning the new mechanism will be delayed.

"We believe that such solutions do not have a legal basis in the Treaties, interfere with the competences of the Member States and infringe the law of the European Union," a Polish government statement said.

Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga said on Facebook: "We can't keep that EU legislation in force, which seriously infringes legal certainty."

The European Court of Justice confirmed that both countries, which have been severely criticised by the EU over rule of law, had filed lawsuits.

Poland and Hungary had blocked adoption of Europe's 1.8 trillion euro ($2.2 trillion) budget and coronavirus recovery package over the dispute.

At an EU summit in December, EU leaders struck a compromise that meant the mechanism would not be implemented until the European Court of Justice has ruled on any possible complaints.

The Polish statement said the EU "has no competence to define the concept of 'the rule of law' or to lay down the conditions for assessing compliance with the underlying principles.

"Although the 'rule of law' is a common value of the Member States, its content cannot be shaped by arbitrary decisions without respect for national identities and the diversity of their legal systems and traditions," it said.

The statement said a "politicised interpretation" of EU rules was "a very serious danger not only for Poland but for the entire European Union".

Budapest and Warsaw are major recipients of EU budget cash, and their critics see the rule of law mechanism as a way to slow their alleged slide into authoritarianism.

Both countries have been accused of rolling back democratic freedoms.

Poland is already subject to an EU investigative procedure over its efforts to trim the independence of the judiciary, as is Hungary for an erosion of democratic norms, such as press freedom, under Prime Minister Viktor Orban's rule.

When Poland first objected to the EU's plans in November, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki accused a "European oligarchy" of stronger EU member states of punishing weaker ones.

"We say 'yes' to the European Union, but 'no' to being punished like children, 'no' to mechanisms that mean Poland and other countries are treated unequally," he said.

"This is a matter of sovereignty," he said, adding that tying funding to political conditions decided in Brussels could lead eventually "to a break-up of the EU".