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Brussels (dpa) - In the dispute over the Polish judicial reforms, the fronts between the national conservative government in Warsaw and the EU Commission are hardening.
The Brussels authority sees the independence of Polish judges in jeopardy and is therefore suing the country before the European Court of Justice, as it announced on Wednesday.
In order not to waste time, the Commission called on the highest EU judges to impose provisional measures before a final judgment.
"I am deeply concerned about the ongoing measures that are undermining the independence of the judiciary in Poland," said Commission Vice-President Vera Jourova.
The pressure on Polish judges continues to increase and their independence is increasingly being eroded.
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The government in Warsaw was unimpressed and rejected the EU Commission's approach.
The application has neither a legal nor a factual justification, wrote Poland's government spokesman Piotr Müller on Twitter.
"The regulation of the area of justice is one of the exclusively national domains, which results from the Polish constitution and the EU treaties."
The Polish regulations did not deviate from the mandatory standards in the EU.
The EU Commission sees it very differently.
In her view, there are two sticking points: First, the law on the discipline of judges undermines the independence of Polish judges and does not comply with the primacy of EU law.
On the other hand, the disciplinary body of the Polish Supreme Court is no longer allowed to operate, as it may not be independent.
The law on the discipline of judges has been in force since mid-February 2020.
It provides that judges face fines, demotion or dismissal if they question the decision-making authority or legality of another judge, chamber or court.
They are also not allowed to be politically active.
It is also about the disciplinary body established in 2018, a key element of the reforms.
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At the request of the EU Commission, the ECJ had already decided in April 2020 that the chamber had to suspend its work for the time being.
The mere danger that a possibly insufficiently independent chamber examines disciplinary proceedings against judges could affect the independence of the judges concerned.
However, the EU Commission criticizes the fact that the chamber continues to make decisions that have a direct impact on the practice of judges.
So she could lift the immunity of judges - with the aim of prosecuting her.
Issues of labor law and social security are also affected.
"It must be possible for the Court of Justice to decide very quickly," said EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders on Wednesday.
The ECJ is now to provisionally determine that the powers of the disciplinary body in question are suspended.
The effect of decisions already made with a view to the immunity of judges should also be nullified.
This is to prevent irreparable damage.
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A prominent case in Poland is that of the judge Igor Tuleya, who was critical of the government and whose immunity was lifted by the disciplinary body in November.
He is also no longer allowed to participate in proceedings and his salaries will be reduced.
In Poland, judges and prosecutors enjoy immunity.
A criminal prosecution is only possible if the immunity has previously been lifted by a court.
The public prosecutor accuses Tuleya of exceeding his authority because he admitted media representatives to the court when the judgment was pronounced in a procedure that was unpleasant for the PiS.
But these are not the only points where both sides are crossed.
The EU Commission responsible for monitoring EU law has already complained to the European Court of Justice several times against the restructuring of the Polish judicial system - and in many cases was right.
There is also a constitutional procedure under Article 7 of the EU treaties against Poland due to alleged disregard for EU fundamental values, which, however, is barely making any progress.
Poland, on the other hand, always rejects the concerns of the EU Commission and is not ready to give in.
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