In a report published on Wednesday 15 January, the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) evaluates Poland’s progress in the fight against corruption in respect of parliamentarians, judges and prosecutors.
Based on a series of previous recommendations, this evaluation welcomes the “determined efforts” of the authorities to re-establish the independence of the National Council of the Judiciary (NCJ).
A new law will change the way its judicial members are elected, ensuring that more than half of them are elected by their peers.
The highly politicised nature of this body, implemented under the PiS party government between 2016 and 2018, was met with condemnation from the European Union and a freeze on payments from the European Refugee Fund and the Cohesion Fund due to concerns about the Rule of law.
Regarding prosecutors, GRECO welcomes the establishment of a commission to ensure compliance with ethical principles, but calls for more in-depth scrutiny of asset declarations.
It also calls for ethics standards for senators and guidance for MPs on declaring potential conflicts of interest, acceptance of gifts and declaring assets.
The Council of Europe’s experts expect a report on Poland’s progress on these issues by 30 November 2025 at the latest, and have announced a high-level mission to the country for this year to discuss the importance of their recommendations.
Link to the GRECO report: https://aeur.eu/f/f1v (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)