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The European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) has adopted a proposal to harmonize the EU’s rule of law mechanisms, writes EUrologus.
The document will also be voted on in the plenary session of the European Parliament, with the aim of reaching an agreement and a joint work plan between the EU institutions, the Parliament, the Commission and the Council of the Member States on the coordination of the various processes of the rule of law, writes EUrologus.
The proposal states, among other things, that “EU values have been fiercely attacked in several Member States over the last decade and that international comparisons and Parliament resolutions show a significant deterioration of democracy, especially in Hungary and Poland. “.
The motion, which was approved by a large majority (51 in favor, 14 against and 1 abstention), affirms that the EU is structurally ill-prepared in the event of a decline in the rule of law in a member state. In the meantime, however, “it faces a growing and unprecedented crisis of its core values.” The text reiterates the concern of MEPs that “the emergence and roots of autocratic and illiberal tendencies” was complemented by Covid-19, corruption, disinformation and state imprisonment in several countries.
The Commission proposes the development of an annual monitoring cycle, which would be an objective tool based on empirical data that would be applied to all Member States, both in a defective way, respecting the principles of proportionality and subsidiarity. This instrument would include both preventive and corrective measures, from country-specific reports to budget conditions.
Until this is done, the three EU institutions should set up a permanent “interinstitutional working group on EU values” to take decisions in cooperation with the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, based on the opinion of a panel. from independent experts.
The LIBE proposal would include the Article 7 procedure and complement existing instruments, the document indicates.
Michal Simecka, a Slovak liberal politician who drafted the report, said the EU should shift the momentum to put EU values at the center of European politics and avoid further erosion of democratic values. They propose a legally binding interinstitutional agreement that, in the opinion of the politician, could consolidate and strengthen existing initiatives, which in turn could improve the EU’s self-defense capacity.
The proposal will be debated and voted on by MEPs in the next session of the European Parliament from 5 to 8 October.
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