First reading of bill on judiciary changes on Thursday
The amended Supreme Court bill that could unlock Poland’s access to billions of euros in EU funding will be have its first reading on Thursday, a spokesman for the ruling party has said.
On Wednesday Mateusz Morawiecki, the Polish prime minister, met the heads of parliamentary caucuses to discuss draft legislation on judicial reforms required by the European Commission (EC).
A day before, Law and Justice (PiS) the governing party, filed an amended Supreme Court bill with the Sejm, the lower house of the Polish parliament, which proposes that all disciplinary issues concerning judges be settled by the top administrative court instead of the Supreme Court's Chamber of Professional Responsibility.
The latter is a body created to replace a disciplinary chamber considered by the EC to be politicised.
Following Morawiecki's meeting with heads of parliamentary caucuses, PiS spokesman Rafal Bochenek said that during the talks: "It was agreed that the first reading of the bill will be carried out tomorrow, at the current session of the Sejm."
According to him, "all caucuses have expressed readiness and willingness to work on the bill."
Bochenek added that the session of the Sejm will be continued next Tuesday when the second and third readings of the bill will be held.
