| Author (Corporate) | Council of the European Union, European Parliament |
|---|---|
| Series Title | Official Journal of the European Union |
| Series Details | L 433I, Pages 1-10 |
| Publication Date | 22/12/2020 |
| Content Type | Blog, Legislation, News, Policy-making |
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Summary: Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2092 - adopted by the co-legislators on 16 December 2020 - setting out protective measures of the European Union's own budget in case of generalised deficiencies as regards the rule of law in the Member States. Further information: This original proposal was adopted by the European Commission on 2 May 2018 to establish rules necessary for the protection of the EU's budget in case of generalised deficiencies as regards the rule of law in the Member States. The proposed procedure would be launched with an investigation by the Commission. Upon the establishment of a deficiency on respecting the rule of law, a proposal for an implementing act would be submitted to the Council of the European Union. The adoption would take place unless the Council decided - by qualified majority - to reject the Commission's proposal within one month of it being submitted for appreciation. The Council could also amend the Commission’s proposal and adopt the amended text as a Council decision. The draft initiative was discussed by the co-legislators in the framework of the discussions for the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2021-2027. The European Parliament's plenary session discussed its position in January 2019 and referred it back to the relevant committees for further discussion. A negotiating position was eventually adopted by the plenary session on 4 April. In July 2019, the Commission published a Communication on strengthening the rule of law within the Union, which calls on this proposal to be adopted as soon as possible. The European Council provided in July 2020 political guidance on this matter. The Council of the European Union later held discussions based on such guidance. An informal agreement between the co-legislators on a compromise text was reached on 5 November. However, three Member States later announced the opposition to the text and threatened the veto the whole MFF package. A further political agreement was reached during a meeting of the European Council on 10 December 2020. It states that the Commission is to adopt guidelines on the way to apply the Regulation, including a methodology for carrying out the assessments. Following the formal endorsement by the co-legislators, the Act was signed on 16 December 2020 and published in the Official Journal on 22 December 2020. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) announced on 11 March 2021 that Hungary and Poland had launched legal action against this Regulation. On 25 March, the European Parliament adopted a Resolution threatening the Commission with legal action over the delay in applying the rule of law conditionality mechanism. |
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| Subject Categories | Values and Beliefs |
| Subject Tags | Multiannual Financial Framework [MFF], Rule of Law |
| Keywords | MFF 2021-2027 |
| International Organisations | European Union [EU] |
