📋 Tender Overview
The European Court of Justice decided yesterday that it is possible to stop payments of EU funds to Member States that do not fully respect the rule of law. Sweden played an active role in the legal process in which Poland and Hungary wanted to stop an EU regulation that would allow this.That the rule of law must apply in all EU Member States is a very important issue for the Government which we have long been pushing for. Yesterdays judgment is therefore very welcome says Minister for EU Affairs Hans Dahlgren.In December 2020 the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers jointly decided to introduce a rule of law conditionality regulation. This makes it possible to stop payments of funds to Member States that do not fully respect the rule of law in matters such as independent courts and thereby protect the EUs financial interests.Hungary and Poland later requested that the European Court of Justice declare the regulation invalid as they claim it contravenes the Treaty on European Union. This is a view that the Swedish Government does not share and it therefore decided as did several other EU countries to join the proceedings and to side with the Council and the Parliament when the case was examined by the European Court of Justice in autumn 2021.Many of us in the EU take a positive view of the regulation and have done so since it was introduced in 2020. It means that an EU country that does not respect the rule of law can be faced with serious economic consequences. Simply put if you dont follow the rules it will cost you said Mr Dahlgren.Defending and pushing for all EU Member States to have free independent courts is a priority issue for the Government. This is also why Sweden was actively engaged in the court proceedings in defence of the important instrument that the regulation represents.The judgment yesterday by the European Court of Justice means that Poland and Hungary have lost the case. The Court instead followed the line taken by the Council the Parliament the Commission and the EU countries including Sweden that were engaged in the case. The regulation therefore remains in force.Yesterdays judgment by the European Court of Justice is very welcome and it is important that the regulation can now begin to be fully applied Mr Dahlgren concluded.
