BRUSSELS (Reuters/MaltaToday) – The European Union’s latest democracy health check showed there was no significant deterioration across the 27-nation bloc in areas like media and court freedoms or efforts to tackle corruption over the last year, a top official said on Wednesday.
The assessment came as the EU executive released its latest rule of law report, which includes tips for democratic improvements across EU member states.
Last year’s snapshot highlighted serious concerns about the rule of law in Poland and Hungary. Both governments lost access to billions of euros in EU aid over related disputes.
“This rule of law report shows that there is no radical worsening or backsliding in any member state,” said EU Commissioner for Values and Transparency Vera Jourova.
“I will never be satisfied, in general, because there are a lot of things to be improved,” she continued.
She noted some improvements to the independence of the judiciary in Hungary, as Budapest sought to unlock access to EU grants.
But the report still called on the nation to make improvements in areas including the independence of media and prosecutions of high-level corruption
On Poland, the report said there had been no progress towards 2022 recommendations including ensuring the independence of state prosecutions and fair procedures in awarding media licenses.
Spain, which holds a national election on July 23, was also among the countries warned over the state of its judiciary.
The report reiterated “serious concerns” over the lack of the renewal of the Council of the Judiciary, the country’s top body of judges.
It did not mention days of rioting across France, triggered by police shooting of teenager of North African descent, and contained little reference to the use of excessive force by police in the country.
Jourova said it was up to courts in France to judge every situation separately.
The Shift reports that of six main areas of recommendations, Malta registered ‘some progress’ on three, with ‘no progress’ made on the rest, with the Commission noting that “the efficiency of justice has further deteriorated”, “no measures have been adopted to improve the working environment of journalists”, and that the 2019 Constitutional Convention “remains on hold without a clear calendar”.
MaltaToday reports that the efficiency of the Maltese justice system has deteriorated further and “raises concerns”, the European Commission’s annual rule of law report states.
“For instance, the estimated time needed to resolve administrative cases at first instance is 1,356 days, the longest within the EU,” the report states. The clearance rate, a measure of how many cases are resolved compared to those received, has also been criticised. Currently, only 89.2% of cases are being cleared, according to the report, indicating that fewer cases are being resolved than are coming in. Despite a 20% increase in resolved cases, this improvement was overshadowed by a 22% surge in incoming cases. Of particular concern to the European Commission is the clearance rate for civil and commercial cases, which at the moment stands at a disconcertingly low 78.1%. The report also notes a concerning increase in the number of incoming cases, putting additional strain on an already burdened justice system. The Commission notes the limited progress in reducing the estimated time needed to resolve litigious civil and commercial cases at first instance from 550 days to 529 days.
On a positive note, the report says the level of perceived judicial independence in Malta remains high. However, it raises a red flag about the lack of involvement of the judiciary in the appointment procedure of the Chief Justice.The report mentions other challenges in the justice system that have to be addressed, including the need to have a track record of final judgments in high level corruption cases. The report also called for the Maltese government to adopt legislative and other safeguards to improve the working environment of journalists, including better access to official documents.
Reporting by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Emma Rumney
