The Second Senate of Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court, on Wednesday 21 April, rejected an application for preliminary injunction directed against the Act Ratifying the EU Own Resources Decision, but did not rule on the substance at this stage (see EUROPE 12687/11).
In its statement, the Second Senate found that the complaint, which was initiated by the former German Eurosceptic MEP Bernd Lucke, was neither inadmissible from the outset nor clearly unfounded. However, after a summary examination, it is of the opinion that ”it does not appear likely” that the Court will find a violation of the German Constitution (Article 79) in the principal proceedings in this case.
Pending the final decision of the Constitutional Court, the Senate considers that the consequences of not suspending Germany’s ratification of the Own Resources Decision, even if the Court ultimately finds the German ratification law to be unconstitutional, are less severe than the consequences that would arise if the ratification procedure were provisionally suspended and the constitutional complaint turned out to be unfounded in the principal proceedings.
At this stage, seventeen Member States have notified the ratification of the Own Resources Decision. Ratification by all 27 EU countries is needed to authorise the European Commission to borrow on behalf of the EU27 on the markets to finance the Next Generation EU Recovery Plan.
See the statement of the Karlsruhe Court: https://bit.ly/3xgsElw (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)