Minister hopes for rejection of Senate amendments to Supreme Court bill

Poland's European affairs minister said on Wednesday he expected the Sejm, Poland's lower house of parliament, to reject amendments introduced by the upper house, the Senate, to a bill on the Supreme Court.

On Tuesday evening, the Senate passed the bill unanimously after introducing 14 amendments.

The progress of the bill is being eagerly watched in Poland as the legislation could unlock the country's access to an EU post-pandemic economic recovery fund, from which Poland has been barred on rule-of-law grounds.

The EU's objections largely concern Poland's justice system, especially a disciplinary chamber for judges in the Polish Supreme Court, which the European Commission regards as an illegal restriction on judicial independence.

The new legislation could remove some of the EU's misgivings.

Szymon Szynkowski vel Sek said on Wednesday that he "counted on" the Sejm rejecting the amendments, saying that their passage would "doubtless jeopardise" Poland's chances of gaining access to the EU fund.

He added that some of the Senate amendments to the act violated the president's prerogatives in appointing judges, while others overstepped Poland's agreement on the law with the European Commission.