CVM Report: Evolution on judicial reform, anticorruption fight in first months of 2019 - source of great concern

The evolution of the situation in Romania, the first months of 2019 in terms of judicial system reform and the anticorruption fight was a source of great concern for the Commission, as a result, the European Commission (EC) had to inform the Romanian authorities in May 2019 that if the necessary improvements were not made, or if further negative steps were taken, the Commission would take steps under the rule of law framework, beyond the parameters of the Co-operation and Verification Mechanism (CVM), according to the latest CVM Report, adopted on Tuesday by the College of Commissioners.

The report analyses the situation since November 2018. The document shows that since the last report, the European Commission has had to raise a number of times rule of law-related concerns with the Romanian authorities in relation to developments on judicial reforms and the fight against corruption. On each of these occasions, the Commission has confirmed backtracking from the progress made in previous years and this evolution is a source of great concerns.

"The Commission regrets that Romania did not engage with the additional recommendations made in November 2018, which were fully in line with the positions of the other institutions. These recommendations need to be followed if the reform process is to be put back on track and the path towards the conclusion of the CVM, as set out in the January 2017 report, resumed. The Commission is confident that Romania could give a new momentum to fulfilling the objectives of the CVM, and stands ready to help the Romanian authorities to this end. The Commission will continue to follow developments closely through the CVM," reads the EC release regarding the report.

The Commission welcomed the fact that in June the Romanian Government expressed a wish to reset the approach. It notes that an effort has been made to invest in new consultation and dialogue with the judiciary. The Commission is looking forward to transposing this commitment into concrete legislation and other measures. Progress will require concrete steps - both legislative and administrative - to address the recommendations summarised in this report.

"The key institutions of Romania need to collectively demonstrate a strong commitment to judicial independence and the fight against corruption, and to ensure the effectiveness of national safeguards and checks and balances," reads the release.

In the November 2018 Report, the European Commission concluded that developments in Romania had called into question the irreversibility of progress. As a result, the 12 recommendations set out in the January 2017 report were no longer sufficient to close the CVM and eight additional recommendations had to be made.

Both the European Parliament and the Council endorsed this view. The European Parliament issued a resolution calling for cooperation and citing the risk to the rule of law. The Council Conclusions of December 2018 specifically called on Romania to implement the additional recommendations.