Rule of law is laid down in the EU treaties as one of the values on which the Union is based. It means that governments should be bound by law, that they should not take arbitrary decisions and that citizens should be able to challenge their actions in independent courts.

In view of possible democratic backsliding in Poland and in particular due to the threat to judicial independence, the European Commission initiated in December 2017 an Article 7 procedure to address a possible risk of breach of EU common values.

The Parliament has ever since repeatedly asked the Council to act and in September 2020 warned about the continuous deterioration of the situation in the country, pointing to “overwhelming evidence” of those breaches. Following the October 2021 ruling by the Polish Constitutional, the Polish government’s challenge of the established primacy of EU law was added to Parliament’s long list of concerns.

These include the powers to revise the constitution taken on by the Polish parliament since 2015, expedited legislative procedures and electoral law changes; the broad changes to the country’s judiciary, including appointments and disciplinary procedures; the situation of freedom of expression, media freedom and pluralism; and the criminalisation of sexual education and the de facto ban on abortion.

Rule of law in Poland

Recovery Assistance for Cohesion and the Territories of Europe package (REACT-EU) is an initiative that continues and extends the EU response to the coronavirus crisis and crisis repair measures.

On 18 November 2020, the European Parliament and the Council concluded negotiations on providing assistance to foster crisis repair in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its social consequences, and preparing a green, digital and resilient recovery of the EU economy.

REACT-EU will provide €47,5 billion over the next two years. The resources will be made available through the EU Structural Funds, with €37.5 billion allocated for 2021 and €10 billion for 2022.

Resources will be allocated in accordance with the partnership principle, involving local and regional authorities, as well as relevant bodies representing civil society and social partners.

REACT-EU

From the 1st of July 2021, Slovenia is holding the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union. However, the country&nbsp;has also been the subject of discussions about the “rule of law” within the EU, a concept referring to respect for due process, plurality in politics and media and the upholding of civic freedoms such as free speech.

In its last 2021 Rule of Law report the EC mentioned that the situation of media in the country has been deteriorating.&nbsp;Online harassment of and threats against journalists are a growing source of concern, and several lawsuits against journalists with intimidating effects have been reported as well as&nbsp;instances of political interference in media.

Attacks on media&nbsp;have been criticized by international, European and national journalists and editors associations. The European Commission intervened various times to express its concerns.

A delegation of the Civil Liberties Committee travelled&nbsp;to&nbsp;Slovenia between 13 and 15 October to&nbsp;take stock of the latest developments in the country as regards the situation of the rule of law, media freedom and the fight against corruption including the question of Slovenian delegated prosecutors to the European Public Prosecutors Office.

Their agenda included&nbsp;exchanges with: NGOs; the Human Rights Ombudsman; academics; journalists and press freedom organisations;the Supreme State Prosecutor and former president of the Association of Public Prosecutors of Slovenia; the Data Protection Commissioner; officials of the Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Culture; representatives from the Commission for the Prevention of Corruption; members of the National Assembly; the President of the National Council; and the Presidents of the Constitutional Court and the Court of Auditors.

At the end of the mission, Sophie in ‘t Veld, the Chair of the Civil Liberties Committee delegation, said: "“We observed that the public institutions overall work well. At the same time, the delegation experienced a climate of hostility, distrust and deep polarisation in the country, which erodes trust in and between various public bodies."

Rule of law in Slovenia

This package contains the events between 1st July 2019 and 31 December 2020. For latest events, see related links.

There have been five multiannual financial frameworks (MFFs) to date. The Treaty of Lisbon transformed the MFF from an interinstitutional agreement into a legally binding act. Established for a period of at least five years, an MFF must ensure that the Union’s expenditure develops in an orderly manner and within the limits of its own resources, and sets out provisions with which the annual budget of the Union must comply, thus laying the cornerstone of financial discipline.

After almost five days of negotiations, the European Council finally reached a political agreement on the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2021 to 2027 and a specific recovery instrument following the coronavirus crisis – Next Generation EU (NGEU) – together totalling €1 824.3 billion. Before the MFF can enter into force, the Parliament must give its consent, which is also a pre-condition for the adoption, by co-decision, of legislation on the new policy programmes.

EU Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027 and recovery plan (2019-2020)

The shock caused by the coronavirus pandemic affects everyone. However, there are big differences in the extent of the harm caused, and the long-term development of the pandemic and associated crises are highly uncertain.

Inequalities have been on the rise, particularly in case of certain vulnerable groups, those who remained all the time at work, but often had low income: health workers, grocery store workers, delivery workers, Amazon factory workers, or street cleaners, among others. Lower income individuals run greater health risks, and many of them are women.

Not all work is suited to transition to teleworking. This is particularly the case for precarious workers. Other factors have also contributed to the increase of social divides across generations and regions. Beside the closure of businesses, school closures have put enormous pressure on families. Aspects of this situation may cause lifelong harm, such in the case of the youngest children who might never recuperate the benefits for their personal development and social integration, school children who miss the opportunity to learn foundational lifelong skills, and those secondary school students who were about to take their exams.

The pandemic has also deeply affected quality of life, including mental wellbeing, trust and employment prospects. Finally, many households have been facing the prospect of falling into poverty due to a drop in their income linked to the coronavirus crisis and their limited resources to cope with the financial shocks.

Concrete measures the EU took to support the economic recovery are: the EU's recovery plan, Next Generation EU, SURE: temporary support for workers, amendments to the EU budget to address urgent issues,re-direction of EU funds to help member states most in need, support to most affected sectors

Coronavirus outbreak: impact on social life (2020)

The EU provides additional financial support to Member States to protect jobs and workers affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

The European Central Bank is providing €750 billion to relieve government debt during the crisis, as well as €120 billion in quantitative easing and €20 billion in debt purchases. In addition, MEPs voted to make €37 billion from existing EU structural funds available to EU countries to tackle the coronavirus crisis and support healthcare, businesses and workers.

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, presents a revised long-term EU budget (MFF 2021-2027) and recovery plan during a plenary session. MEPs discuss the proposals, but have already called for a €2 trillion recovery package to help the EU bounce back from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Coronavirus outbreak: impact on economic situation (2020)

The coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic has put European health systems under enormous strain, revealing gaps in the way public health emergencies are addressed however Parliament has consistently promoted a coherent EU public health policy.

The European Commission's proposal for a new EU Health programme, EU4Health, aims to fill these gaps. EU4Health's three main priorities are: tackling cross-border health threats; making medicines available and affordable; and strengthening health systems.

Coronavirus outbreak: impact on health (2020)

From January to June 2021, Portugal held the Presidency of the EU Council, following the German Presidency and preceding the Slovenian Presidency.

Portugal presided over the Council of the European Union for the fourth time, since 1992.

Portuguese Presidency of the Council declared the importance of strengthening Europe's resilience and its citizens' confidence in the European social model, promoting a Union based on shared values of solidarity, convergence and cohesion – a Union capable of coordinated action to recover from the crisis.

Portuguese Presidency

Vaccines are a key part of a long-term strategy to bring SARS-CoV-2 under control. It is essential to roll out vaccination rapidly to protect as many people as possible and to lower the opportunities for the virus to evolve further. Any vaccine must be authorised by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

The European Commission has secured up to 4.4 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines so far - and negotiations are underway for additional doses. However, countries are facing different challenges around the disinformation or vaccine acceptance. The European Parliament is trying to keep an eye on the purchase and safety of these vaccines. During June plenary the EP adopted a resolution calling for COVID-19 vaccine patent waiver. Parliament proposed negotiations start for a temporary waiver of the WTO TRIPS Agreement on patents to improve global access to affordable COVID-19-related medical products and to address global production constraints and supply shortages. The EP approved also the Digital Green Certificate to facilitate the safe free movement of citizens within the EU during the pandemic.

EU Vaccine Strategy

The European Union and Georgia’s close relationship is based on the "EU Georgia Association Agreement" that includes&nbsp;a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA).

The&nbsp;DCFTA entered into force in July 2016 and strives for political association and economic integration. The EU remains committed to supporting a strong, independent and prosperous Georgia via a firm&nbsp;support to the country's&nbsp;territorial independence within its internationally recognised borders,&nbsp;political dialogue, as well as cooperation and assistance programmes.&nbsp;

EU - Georgia

EU leaders met in Brussels in March to discuss the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Single Market, industrial policy, digital transformation and the economy, the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean, and relations with Russia.

They took stock of the roll-out of vaccines and the epidemiological situation and pursued the coordinated response to the pandemic crisis. They discussed the key priorities for the single market, industrial policy and the digital transformation. The High Representative and the Commission submitted a report on EU-Turkey relations ahead of the meeting, following the conclusions of the European Council in December 2020. The EU leaders held a strategic debate on the relations with Russia. The European Parliament discussed the outcome of the EU Council and of EU and Turkey meeting during April plenary session.

European Council, 25-26 March 2021

Kosovo is a potential candidate for EU accession. It unilaterally declared its independence in February 2008.

All but five Member States (Cyprus, Greece, Romania, Slovakia and Spain) have recognised Kosovo’s independence. In the region, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina have not recognised Kosovo. A Visa Liberalisation Roadmap was issued in June 2012. In July 2018, the Commission confirmed that Kosovo had fulfilled the last criterion. The European Parliament followed suit and decided to enter into interinstitutional negotiations, which are ongoing. After a landmark agreement on normalising relations (the ‘Brussels Agreement’) was reached in April 2013 by Belgrade and Pristina, the European Council decided to open negotiations on an SAA with Kosovo in June 2013. The SAA entered into force on 1 April 2016. Kosovo’s future EU integration — like Serbia’s — remains closely linked to the EU-facilitated high-level dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, which should lead to a legally binding comprehensive agreement on the normalisation of their relations

EU - Kosovo

North Macedonia submitted its membership application in 2004 and became a candidate for accession to the EU in 2005. The Council decided to open accession negotiations with Albania and North Macedonia on 25 March 2020, following the Commission's proposals on a revised enlargement methodology.

North Macedonia is currently on its way to becoming the 30th member of NATO and hopes for a swift ratification of the NATO Accession Protocol by all partners; it reiterates its belief in the positive impact that the accession of North Macedonia to NATO will have for peace and stability in the region; underlines that the accession of North Macedonia to NATO is an encouraging sign of improved climate in the region.

EU - North Macedonia

Turkey has been candidate for EU membership since 1999. Accession negotiations started in 2005.

As a major emerging economy and a member of NATO and G20, Turkey is a key partner for the European Union. It is recognised as an active regional foreign policy player, with a strategic location, including for the EU's energy security. The EU is therefore committed to intensify further the political dialogue with Turkey in particular on foreign policy issues of mutual interest.

EU - Turkey (2019-2020)

Czechia&nbsp;has been an EU member country since 1st May 2004 and&nbsp;is a parliamentary republic with a head of government - the Prime Minister - and a head of state - the President. The country was formed in 1993, after Czechoslovakia was split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. There are 21 members of the European Parliament from Czechia.

EU - Czechia

On 24 and 25 May, EU leaders met physically in Brussels to discuss the most pressing issues.

On 24 May leaders discussed the forced landing of a Ryanair flight in Minsk and subsequent arrest of anti-government activist and journalist Roman Protasevich. EU leaders invited Council to adopt further sanctions and necessary measures to ban overflight of EU airspace by Belarusian airlines and prevent access to EU airports of flights operated by such airlines. They also called on all EU-based carriers to avoid overflight of Belarus. Leaders also had the state of play of the coordination of the EU's response to COVID-19 on the agenda. They held a strategic debate on Russia and discussed the EU's relations with the UK, following the entry into force of the EU-UK trade and cooperation agreement on 1 May 2021.

Special European Council, 24-25 May 2021

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Interviews with the cast for the Hero movie

Open Days at the European Parliament in Strasbourg

Open Days at the European Parliament in Strasbourg - Jaume DUCH speech

EP Plenary session - Voting session

EP Plenary session - Framework of measures for strengthening Europe’s net-zero technology products manufacturing ecosystem (Net Zero Industry Act)

EP Plenary session - Pre-enlargement reforms and policy reviews

EP Plenary session - Interinstitutional Body for Ethical Standards

EP Plenary session - Joint Debate - Advance passenger information

EP Plenary session - The anti-LGBTIQ bill passed by the Ghanaian parliament with implications for human rights, freedom of expression and democratic principles

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