Constitutional court rules changes as unconstitutional

The ruling on Thursday, following a confidential sitting of the Tribunal, referred to several points in the new law, which was recently passed by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party in parliament.

The Tribunal declared as unconstitutional, among other points, a provision that the head of the Constitutional Tribunal has to refer requests for judgment to the Prime Minister; the decision by the government not to publish an earlier ruling by the Tribunal; and the forcing of the head of the Tribunal to swear in three new judges who were elected by the present parliament.

In late July, the European Commission urged Poland to respect rulings by the country's Constitutional Tribunal, issuing a set of recommendations and giving Warsaw three months to comply.

The commission’s recommendations mark the second stage of a "rule-of-law" probe launched into Poland in January. The process could in theory eventually lead to the EU imposing penalties on Warsaw, but any such move would have to be backed unanimously by EU member states.

The commission said in July it believed that there is “a systemic threat to the rule of law in Poland.”

Poland has been locked in a political stalemate after Law and Justice, which came to power in October, introduced sweeping reforms to the Constitutional Tribunal and other institutions, prompting anti-government protests and criticism from abroad. (rg)