During the ‘Justice’ Council on Thursday, 11 March, the European Commission gave its traditional briefing on the establishment of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The appointment of European Delegated Prosecutors is progressing slowly (see EUROPE 12669/4), so much so that European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders felt that the European Public Prosecutor’s Office could start its activities with a reduced number of prosecutors.
By the end of February, only 32 European Delegated Prosecutors from seven Member States (Germany, Slovakia, Estonia, Lithuania, Romania, the Czech Republic, and the Netherlands)—out of the 140 prosecutors expected from the 22 participating countries—had actually been appointed.
During the meeting, European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders once again called on Member States to expedite their national procedures and to have them finalised by April.
In a press conference, he said that it was, however, not “essential” to wait for the 140 European Delegated Prosecutors to be in place for the European Public Prosecutor’s Office to actually start its work.
He explained that, in the event there is “sufficient representation” in each of the 22 participating countries, some—those not yet at the end of the process—could, if necessary, begin with a smaller number, provided that a clear timetable for the rest of the appointments was established.
The commissioner indicated that he had already had this discussion with European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kövesi, who reportedly shares this view as well.
In doing so, Mr Reynders hoped that the European Public Prosecutor’s Office could start its activities in the first half of 2021. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)