European justice validated Wednesday, February 16, in a long-awaited judgment, a device linking the payment of European Union funds to respect for the rule of law, inflicting a setback on Hungary and Poland, threatened by this new “conditionality regime”.
The CJEU, whose decision was for the first time broadcast live on its website, followed the opinion of the Advocate General and rejected the actions for annulment brought by Budapest and Warsaw against this regulation.
“This mechanism was adopted on an adequate legal basis” and “respects the limits of the competences attributed to the Union as well as the principle of legal certainty”said the Court in particular in a press release.
Poland immediately denounced a “attack on [sa] sovereignty”. “Poland must defend its democracy against the blackmail that aims to deprive us of our right to self-determination”Deputy Justice Minister Sebastian Kaleta wrote on Twitter.
Hungary, through its Minister of Justice Judit Varga, castigated a “new means of pressure” on Budapest, considering that this judgment was linked to the law on homosexuality adopted this summer, which had been greeted with a chorus of criticism within the European Union.
Berlin, on the other hand, welcomed a decision which “strengthens our community of values”.
The approval by the courts of this unprecedented instrument will increase the pressure on the Commission, responsible for activating it. The European executive had agreed, in agreement with the Twenty-Seven, to await the opinion of the Court before acting, while the regulation has been in force since January 1, 2021.
But, for months, the European Parliament has been getting impatient. He even filed an appeal for inaction against the Commission. The Court’s decision is due to be debated in the Strasbourg hemicycle on Wednesday afternoon.
“It’s a major victory, Europe is finally acquiring a powerful and concrete lever to sanction populist leaders who want to silence all the checks and balances of our democratic model”said MEP Fabienne Keller (Renew Europe).