European Parliament elections, relations between the European Union and its neighbors, cooperation between parliaments and EU institutions - these are the main topics of the Vienna Conference of Speakers of EU Parliaments, in which Poland was represented by Marshal of the Sejm Marek Kuchciński and Marshal of the Senate Stanisław Karczewski. It is a forum for discussing the tasks of national parliaments in the European structure, inter-parliamentary cooperation on EU matters and the challenges facing the Union.
Below is the speech of the Speaker of the Sejm:
2019 is an exceptional year for discussions on cooperation in Europe. For this year we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the first free elections in Central Europe after the fall of communism, which took place in Poland in 1989, as well also the anniversaries of the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia and the changes in Hungary.
These events took place before the Berlin Wall came down and changed the the face of Central Europe and created the conditions for the unification of Europe. Today, after these 30 years and after 15 years of the Central European countries' presence in the EU, I would like to draw your attention to I would like to draw your attention to several challenges.
Firstin the EU is facing a crisis of values. Recent years have shown the divisions among Member States and make us aware that a common identity cannot be based The last years show the divisions among the member states and make us realize that the common identity cannot be based only on economic or institutional foundations in isolation from cultural and social awareness. Europe is not just a market without a soul.
Europe has Christian roots, from which stems respect for others and tolerance; on the basis of these roots we should look for on the basis of which we should look for optimal solutions to strengthen European identity.
Second, worries in the EU is the decline in the functioning of the law. This is because there is unequal treatment Member States. The Union is based on the Treaties and the principle of subsidiarity. The treaties define the competences of the states and The treaties define competences of the states and the EU institutions, and this boundary is violated by the EU and it is problem. Today we are observing different treatment of countries that joined the EU in 2004 and EU in 2004 and later, from the so called old member states. An example is the judiciary, whose organization is - according to the Lisbon Treaty - an internal competence of member states. If a judicial institution exists in one country, it has to exist If a judicial institution exists in one state, it also has the right to exist and operate on similar principles in another state. Poles They wanted this reform because in Polish courts pathologies had been growing for years due to The Polish people wanted this reform because pathologies had been growing in the Polish courts for years due to the lack of real balance of power and the consequences of totalitarianism. It is impossible for a democratic The Polish people wanted this reform because pathologies had been growing in the Polish courts for years due to the lack of real balance of powers and the consequences of totalitarianism. justice system.
In Poland, judicial institutions are even less politicized than in other countries because judges have much more influence on them. When the current government won the elections in 2015, it proceeded to the announced reform of the judiciary. An element of the reform is, among others, the amendment of the Act on the Supreme Court and changing the way members of the NCJ are appointed. This is in line with the treaties, consistent with the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and with solutions This is in line with the treaties, in compliance with the Constitution of the Republic of Poland and with the solutions found in many member states (method of appointing members of the equivalent of the Polish NCJ), e.g. Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands, Portugal, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. This is in line with the treaties and the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, and with solutions found in many member states (the way the members of the equivalent of the Polish KRS are appointed), e.g. Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands, Portugal, Austria, Germany, Sweden and Denmark.
Accusations that Poland does not respect the rule of law are unfounded and formulated for the needs of specific political forces during the The allegations against Poland of failure to respect the rule of law are unfounded and are made for the needs of certain political forces during the ongoing campaign for the European Parliament. This is meddling in the internal affairs internal affairs of the state. We cannot, therefore, tolerate this extra-tractual practice. extra-tractual practice cannot be tolerated. We should expect the EU institutions to treat all Member States equally. of all Member States.
Third, democratic The EU needs to increase the importance of national parliaments. The reform of the reform of the EU system should be accompanied by a real democratic national electoral processes.
In my view, the EU's fundamental mistake is to underestimate this issue. I believe that rebalancing the relationship between national parliaments national parliaments and the European institutions should be an important goal of the renewal of the European Union.
The appreciation of the role of national parliaments in the decision-making process is an opportunity to strengthen the democratic legitimacy of the EU. And a symbol of declining importance of national parliaments in the EU lawmaking process ineffectiveness of the "yellow card" mechanism. Out of 370 attempts to activate it by national by national parliaments, the European Commission has taken it up only three times, and only in one case only in one case the draft was withdrawn.
Fourth, Union European Union must take care of its unity, the solidarity of its member states. The strength of Union does not result only from the strength of individual states, but we create together. In this context, a new look at the Multiannual Financial In this context, we need a new look at the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027.
We note with concern the information about planned cuts in funding for agricultural and cohesion policy. These policies are the unquestionable achievements of the EU. Reducing their funding will be a blow to the foundations of the Community. a blow to the foundations of the community. It will increase the popularity of Eurosceptics. Eurosceptics.
Fifth, all agree that economic development of the EU should be a priority. But Europe needs a new impulse in this in this respect, as the pace of development is unsatisfactory and some EU countries are facing the middle-growth trap.
A multi-speed Europe is not the right answer. may even harm the operation of the common market, which is one of the main assets of the EU.
In my opinion, success in solving these challenges challenges largely depends on the cooperation of the Member States.
The European Union is a great achievement, but reforms are necessary. The discussion about the EU cannot be based on ideology, but on facts, because The EU is diverse. We speak different languages, have different histories, customs etc. We have to respect these different cultures of countries and nations. This unity in diversity diversity is the foundation of the EU.
The above proposals should help to develop future cooperation between parliaments and improve the quality of cooperation between our with the EU institutions.
Photo: Łukasz Błasikiewicz/ Sejm
