Polish parliament passes Constitutional Tribunal bill
PR dla Zagranicy
Roberto Galea
30.11.2016 14:29
The Polish parliament on Wednesday passed a bill introducing changes to the Constitutional Tribunal, including the way a new court head is selected.
The HQ of the Constitutional Tribunal. Photo. Wikimedia Commons
The term of Andrzej Repliński, the current head of Poland’s top court, expires on 19 December.
The bill passed on Wednesday introduces a six-year maximum term for the new head.
It also says that a new candidate must be nominated "a month from the day the post is vacated". The bill does not specify how many people can be nominated to head the tribunal.
A total of 228 MPs voted in favour of the bill, with 200 voting against, and six abstaining.
According to the governing Law and Justice (PiS) party, the changes will allow the court to operate more efficiently.
The opposition claimed that the changes were designed to allow people close to PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński to "take control of the Constitutional Tribunal”. (rg)
Source: PAP