Poland’s President Andrzej Duda said Friday he is sending a controversial new law on judicial accountability for constitutional review instead of rejecting it, because it could help unfreeze billions in European Union funds earmarked for Poland.
Brussels has suspended payment of the pandemic recovery funds to Warsaw saying the government’s policies of exerting control over the judiciary, especially through the Supreme Court, violate democratic principles. The EU has called for essential changes before Poland can get access to more than 35 billion euros ($37 billion) of grants and loans. Some previous changes proposed by Poland did not go far enough for the EU.
