In a report dated Tuesday 24 June, a copy of which was sent to Agence Europe, the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union takes stock of Member States’ thoughts on the internal reform of the EU - on a constant treaty basis - in order to prepare the EU for the challenges it faces and its enlargement by 2030.
The report sent to the national delegations takes stock of the work undertaken and the results achieved since the beginning of 2025 in the four areas - fundamental values, common policies, budget and governance - identified as priorities for improving the functioning of an enlarged EU (see EUROPE 13439/8).
On the question of fundamental values, the Polish Presidency notes that the Member States consider the EU to be “well equipped” to monitor and deal with problems relating to the Rule of law using the instruments and bodies available (the so-called ‘Article 7 of the Treaty’ procedure on respect for the Rule of law, the Rule of Law Conditionality Regulation, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office). However, further thought is needed on how to use these tools to their “full potential”, such as possibly extending the mandate of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office to deal with breaches of European sanctions.
The report lists the successes achieved under the Polish Presidency in numerous sectoral policies such as agriculture, defence and competitiveness. The Polish authorities stress the importance of a “pragmatic approach” to successfully decarbonise the European economy.
On budgetary issues, the Polish Presidency, on the basis of a ministerial meeting in February (see EUROPE 13582/20), notes that many Member States advocate allocating sufficient resources in the post-2027 Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) to the new challenges facing the EU (security, defence, migration, competitiveness, support for Ukraine). Others advocate a balanced approach to funding these new challenges and the EU’s traditional policies (agriculture, cohesion).
“The possible move from payment-based to performance-based instruments and the possibility to reinforce the existing Rule of Law conditionality are also among the elements some Member States have considered relevant for the upcoming negotiations”, adds the outgoing Presidency of the EU Council, while the Commission is due to present its proposal for the MFF in two stages starting mid-July (see EUROPE 13667/29).
As for the ‘resources’ strand of the EU budget, it notes that Member States’ positions differ on the issue of own resources, with the result that “progress based on the current Commission proposal remains difficult” (see EUROPE 13660/17).
Finally, with regard to governance, the Member States are thinking in terms of a constant treaty. “The Council’s work on this strand aims at exploring the full potential and flexibilities of the current EU Treaties in order to maintain and reinforce the EU’s capacity to act and to ensure the effective functioning of the EU institutions”, emphasises the Polish Presidency.
The Member States’ objective is to prioritise and accelerate legislative work and to simplify the regulatory framework. The report is silent on the issue of decision-making in the EU Council, where the unanimity rule is often singled out as a factor slowing down work.
At this stage, the European Parliament’s request to convene a Convention on the reform of the EU (Article 48 procedure of the Treaty), transferred to the European Council, remains dead in the water. The Commission, which had been invited to present its assessment of the Community policies most affected by a future enlargement in the spring, has postponed the presentation of its report until the autumn.
To see the Polish Presidency document: https://aeur.eu/f/hlt (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)