Poland has told European Union It will close a chamber of its Supreme Court dedicated to disciplinary judges, an issue that has been at the core of the dispute between Warsaw and Brussels.
The Polish government said on Tuesday that it had issued a letter to the European Commission in unanimous terms. This is the deadline for Warsaw to notify the European Commission on how it will deal with the European Commission’s violation of judicial independence and violation of EU law in the European Supreme Court.
When announcing that the Chamber was to be dissolved, the Polish government insisted that it needed a way to punish judges who violated the law or otherwise abused their powers. It stated that it would find a way to do this as it continues to reorganize the judicial system.
The government also insists that Polish law takes precedence over EU law, which is another issue that exacerbates tensions between the 27 member states and the EU. Poland, Its fifth most populous country.
European Commission spokesperson Christian Wigand said that Poland has received and is analyzing the letter, and he cannot comment further.
Since the conservative Law and Justice Party took power in Poland in 2015, it has overhauled the judicial system, giving the party new powers in the appointment of courts and judges. These changes have aroused strong criticism and warnings from the EU on sanctions. The EU believes that many changes violate the democratic principle of the separation of powers.
The European Commission has asked Poland to comply with the ban before Monday, otherwise it will face financial sanctions.
