On Thursday 13 April, the lower chamber of the Polish parliament endorsed a change to reform of the country’s justice system to respond to the concerns of the European Commission about the rule of law (see EUROPE 11997).
The PiS party agreed after 20 March to amend the details of some of the reforms challenged by the European Commission, such as the retirement age of men and women judges. The Polish parliament adopted an amendment to have the same retirement age for both men and women and an amendment on scrapping giving the justice minister the option of sacking judges without first consulting other judges or the National Magistrates Council.
The chair of the Polish supreme court, Małgorzata Gersdorf, said, however, in a press release that the concessions made by PiS were (according to AFP) proposed amendments that would not help resolve the current conflicts on the rule of law as they do not cover the most controversial issues.
European foreign ministers will be discussing this question in Luxembourg on Tuesday 17 April (at the General Affairs Council) but a formal discussion is not planned at this stage.
The vice-president of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans, will brief the ministers, who will then decide whether Poland should attend a new hearing on the question in May or, more likely, a diplomatic source says, in June. The source says ‘positive signs’ have been received in relation to this matter. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic with Mathieu Bion)