Action needed to defend rule of law

“The first Annual Rule of Law Report is a welcome step forward to protecting the rights of our citizens. It now needs to be backed up with action and consequences to effectively prevent breaches”, said Roberta Metsola MEP, EPP Group Spokeswoman for the Civil Liberties Committee in the European Parliament.

Today’s publication assesses the state of the rule of law across the 27 Member States and raises serious issues that cannot be ignored, according to Metsola: “The rule of law is about protecting fundamental rights and civil liberties which relies on an independent judiciary, democracy and accountability and a strong, free media. It is the pillar upon which every one of our treaties is based.”

“The issues raised here cannot be ignored. The EPP Group has repeatedly called for an EU-wide mechanism that is fair and non-discriminatory in monitoring the state of the rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights in every Member State, where each Member State is assessed on an equal footing.”

“The aim of this Report is to act as a warning system, it is designed to help Member States address any deficiencies or potential problems. The focus should be on ensuring improvement and protection. However, the EU also needs to be equipped with adequate tools that are consistently used to thoroughly and fairly investigate and impose sanctions against any clear, repeated breaches of the rule of law when necessary”, she underlined.

The EPP Group strongly supports the inclusion of a conditionality clause in the next Multiannual Financial Framework on democracy, rule of law and fundamental rights, linking EU financing to respect for the rule of law.