Swarna Shukla-
Published On: October 12, 2021 at 13:00 IST
The Poland and the European Union (EU) suffered an impediment against an already hampered relationship.
This happened after a Polish Court provided a major challenge to EU’s framework, effectively rejecting the primacy of EU law over Polish National Legislation in certain matter.
Poland Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki defended the controversial Judgement, saying his nation is not an “uninvited guest” in the EU and hence does not consent to being regarded as a second-class member.
Many have labelled this as a step that might lead to a “legal Polexit,” as it raises serious concerns about cooperation between Polish and European courts.
The ruling has therefore, created a setback from the Bloc and several other member States, triggered a national outrage in the country which could jeopardize Poland’s access to EU funds among other things.
Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal, essentially declared that EU law should not have primacy over every National Legislation in Poland. The ruling also says that Polish Judges should not use EU laws to question their peers.
It all started when some changes were made in the Poland’s Judiciary. The ruling party brought amendments to legal system that increased Government control over judges, which reduces independence of Judiciary. It also introduced new Supreme Court Chamber that had power to sanction judges for certain rulings.
The Commission asked the European Court of Justice to charge daily fine to Poland for not suspending the activities of this new SC Chamber. The Court ruled that it infringes the EU Law.
After the ruling received a widespread setback, the Prime Minister reiterated that Poland wants to stay in the EU and said the issue has become a bigger deal than it is..
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