At the ‘General Affairs’ Council, on Tuesday 26 May, EU Member States’ ministers responsible for European affairs continued the 2025 annual dialogue on the rule of law. Following an initial cycle, in January, devoted to Estonia, Denmark, Greece and Spain, this time the discussions were based on the chapters of the European Commission’s annual report relating to France, Croatia, Italy and Latvia.
In its assessment of France, the Commission looks back at the implementation of the reform of the status of magistrates adopted in 2023, the budgetary efforts for an increase in the number of magistrates and the continued digitalisation of judicial procedures. The report also notes the concerns of the Superior Council of Magistracy about attacks on certain judges following sensitive court decisions.
At the press conference following the discussions, the European Commissioner for the Rule of Law, Michael McGrath, welcomed the plans to “digitalise procedures in the courts”.
With regard to Italy, the Commission notes that the reform of the judicial system continues to be rolled out, while the draft constitutional reform separating the careers of judges and prosecutors is being examined by the Parliament.
The report also mentions progress in the fight against corruption and the modernisation of the justice system, despite the fact that difficulties linked to the length of legal proceedings are still being encountered.
Although he spoke of “fairly positive trends”, Commissioner McGrath reiterated the need “to make rapid progress with the procedures”.
For Croatia, the report notes the reforms undertaken with regard to the remuneration of judges and prosecutors, as well as the progress made in digitalising the judicial system. Nevertheless, the perception of the independence of the judiciary remains very low. The document also mentions the continuation of anti-corruption efforts and measures to improve the follow-up of the Ombudsman’s recommendations.
For Latvia, the efficiency of the judicial system and the creation of a new Judicial Academy are reported. The Commission notes, however, that no progress has been made on safeguards against political influence in the procedure for appointing Supreme Court judges. The Commissioner praised the “efficiency of the judicial system”.
2025 Rule of Law Reports: France: https://aeur.eu/f/m1n ; Croatia: https://aeur.eu/f/m1o ; Italy: https://aeur.eu/f/m1p ; Latvia: https://aeur.eu/f/m1q (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)