This Wednesday 29 April, Members of the European Parliament voted 387 in favour and 191 against the text on the European Commission's 2025 rule of law report. In addition to the analysis provided by Parliament on the Commission's work, this exercise aims to maintain political pressure so that the recommendations made to Member States are actually followed up with effects and results. Sophie Wilmès represented the Renew Europe group as shadow rapporteur (“shadow rapporteur”) during the negotiations.
Following the adoption of this report, Sophie Wilmès welcomes the inclusion of a full and detailed chapter dedicated to the creation of a Rule of Law Cycle: “This is a project I have been championing since the beginning of the legislature, and it is starting to take shape. Why does it matter? Yes, the tools already exist to enforce the rule of law, such as conditionality or the Article 7 procedure, but they need to be strengthened, coordinated and, above all, better structured. This cycle works in an integrated way: with a real timetable, stages and objectives to achieve. Parliament plays a leading role in it. This new, more inter-institutional structure, with clearer procedures, should also reduce institutions' reluctance to use these essential levers for our fundamental values as enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaties. We have seen it in the past: without this impetus, Europe has tended to remain a bystander, and sometimes to act too late or too weakly in the face of the slow erosion of the rule of law, as it did with Mr Orbán's Hungary. We must precisely learn the lessons of the Orbán years.”
She concludes: “since drafting my position paper on the subject, the idea of this cycle has not only featured in President von der Leyen's State of the Union address but is now the official position of the European Parliament. All the lights are green for this project to become a reality quickly. This is fundamental for European citizens because, let us not forget, it is through respect for the rule of law that their rights and freedoms are protected against corruption and abuse of power.”
Beyond this significant victory, the report also stands out for its timetable. This year, MEPs succeeded in bringing it forward so that this report would be adopted in April rather than June. This avoids the final adoption of Parliament's report clashing with the publication of the Commission's new report, usually scheduled around the summer, and thus prevents the risk of the exercise becoming partly obsolete. MEPs' aim is for the Commission to take improvement requests into account starting with the next 2026 edition. These include an earlier publication date for its own report so that it is not published during the summer period and thus receives the necessary attention. In addition, a request was made to include in the report a section on the implementation of CJEU and ECHR rulings.
The report also confirms Parliament's intention to provide a more in-depth analysis each year of the situation in countries subject to an Article 7 procedure or where serious and systemic violations of the rule of law have been identified. Sophie Wilmès, also shadow rapporteur on the report concerning Article 7 regarding Hungary, explains: “Parliament's aim here is to move beyond ‘name and shame’, the simple denunciation, towards a more thorough examination.”
Finally, the report takes on board some strong priorities championed by the Renew Europe group, such as combating foreign interference, safeguards to prevent civil society from being penalised when European funds are blocked due to a government's policies, and the fight against antisemitism.