The European Commission’s latest report on the rule of law in the EU is over 100 pages long. It is the Commission’s fifth project and examines national judiciaries, national anti-corruption provisions, media freedom and more.

Hungary: The known “problem child” of the EU

Most of the critical comments concern Hungary and Slovakia. Hungarians get hardly any good marks from the EU. According to the commission, the country made absolutely no progress in any of the areas examined for 2023, such as the administration of justice and the independence of the public media.

This particular report is likely to have a practical impact on Hungary, since the Commission is cutting part of the European funds precisely because of violations of the rule of law in Viktor Orbán’s country. Only a third of the frozen funds were given out last year, and that only after the government undertook a sweeping reform of the justice system.

Possible measures for Slovakia as well

Slovakia, which from 2023 has a pro-Russian government again, with the left-wing populists of Robert Ficho in power, is also doing poorly. The Commission found progress in only one of the areas under review: the physical safety of journalists. Slovakia is called upon to strengthen the regulatory framework for the protection of public media.

The European Commission is also threatening Slovakia with legal measures over a new NGO law being drawn up by the Bratislava government. Non-Governmental Organizations that are financed, even partially, from abroad should be characterized as “organizations with external support”. If this law is found to be contrary to EU law, the EU could initiate legal proceedings against Slovakia.

Progress, but also recommendations for Greece

Regarding the rule of law in Greece, the European Commission observes that progress has been made in terms of the independence of the judiciary, for example, or the effective and timely consultation of draft laws with stakeholders.

At the same time, the Commission makes four recommendations concerning, among other things, the more effective fight against corruption and the more complete protection of journalists.

The Commission also urges Romania, Poland and Malta to also strengthen the framework to protect the editorial independence and governance of public broadcasters. The recommendations to Italy, Ireland, the Czech Republic and Slovenia concern in particular the establishment of special mechanisms to ensure the financing of public media.

Despite the implementation of various reform packages, the Commission is still quite concerned about the independence of the judiciary in some member states, as Justice Commissioner Didier Reyders stated. In order to make the profession of a judge more attractive, the Commission suggested that Member States invest in staffing.

And Germany has some way to go

For Germany, the Commission stresses that the country should take measures to ensure that judges and prosecutors are adequately paid.

In addition, according to the Commission, Germany must also do something about the phenomenon of the “revolving door” – that is, the sudden jump of former politicians to positions in the private economy. The Commission proposes introducing a longer window, which should elapse before outgoing ministers and deputy ministers can switch to private business.

The overall sign is positive

Overall, the Commission’s sign is positive for the last five years. There is particular satisfaction for two main cases: First, for Poland, where there was a change of baton in the governance of the country, as a result of which the EU stopped the procedures that had been initiated against the country for violations of the rule of law. And secondly for Spain, where the General Council, responsible for the appointment of supreme judges, seems to form its judgment again independently.

The report is of paramount importance as a means of control and as a guideline. However, its impact cannot be assessed in isolation, says John Morihn, professor of law at the University of Groningen. The results depend much more on other, more interventionist tools, such as freezing EU funds.

Edited by: Giorgos Passas