On January 13 and February 10, 2020, the European Parliament received requests to waive the immunity of Mr. Carles Puigdemont i Casamajó, Mr. Antoni Comín i Oliveres and Ms. Clara Ponsatí i Obiols, elected members of Parliament. The purpose of these petitions, presented by the President of the Second Chamber of the Supreme Court in […]
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2021 Rule of Law Report
The European Commission has published the second EU-wide Report on the Rule of Law with a Communication looking at the situation in the EU as a whole and dedicated country chapters on each Member State. The 2021 report looks at the new developments since last September, deepening the assessment of issues identified in the previous report and taking […]
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July infringements package: key decisions
Migration, Home Affairs and Security Union Letters of formal notice Fight against terrorism: Commission urges CYPRUS, CZECHIA, GREECE, SPAIN and LITHUANIA to ensure correct transposition of EU rules on combating terrorism The Commission decided today to open infringement procedures by sending letters of formal notice to Cyprus, Czechia, Greece, Spain and Lithuania for failing to correctly transpose certain elements […]
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Immigration law enforcement in the EU – figures for 2020
In 2020, 137 800 non-EU citizens were refused entry into the EU territory while 557 500 were found to be illegally present in one of the EU Member States. The number of non-EU citizens issued with an order to leave an EU Member State was 396 400 people. Following an order to leave, 99 300 […]
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Human rights breaches in Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia and Iran
On Thursday, the European Parliament adopted three resolutions on the human rights situation in Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia and Iran. Hong Kong, notably the case of Apple Daily Parliament condemns in the strongest terms the recent forced closure of the Apple Daily newspaper in Hong Kong, the continued freezing of its assets and the arrests […]
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European Parliament vehemently opposed to Hungarian anti-LGBTIQ law
New rules in Hungary in “clear breach of EU values, principles and law” Political censorship and gradual dismantling of fundamental rights in Hungary Commission and member states should take urgent legal action Cut funding where European budget is affected by national legislation that clashes with EU values Parliament “condemns in the strongest possible terms” the […]
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EU Justice Scoreboard 2021: how digital tools help courts
Today, 8th July, the European Commission has published the 2021 EU Justice Scoreboard, an annual overview providing comparative data on the efficiency, quality and independence of justice systems in all EU Member States. This year’s Scoreboard focused on the digitalisation of justice, which kept courts functioning during the COVID-19 pandemic and more generally made justice […]
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LGBTIQ rights in Hungary: debate with Council and Commission
Briefing – Newsletter 5-8 July 2021 – Strasbourg plenary session MEPs will assess the risk of discrimination faced by LGBTIQ persons in Hungary, and the rule of law and fundamental rights situation in both Poland and Hungary. On 15 June 2021, the Hungarian Parliament voted almost unanimously (157 votes to 1) in favour of rules […]
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“The Hungarian bill is a shame”, Von der Leyen
Statement by European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, on the new Hungarian bill that discriminates against people based on their sexual orientation: This Hungarian bill is a shame. I have instructed the responsible commissioners to send a letter to express our legal concerns before the bill enters into force. This bill clearly discriminates against […]
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