The European Commission has recommended that the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM), which has been in place since 2007, be abolished, but justice monitoring will continue both through the Rule of Law Mechanism, where in the worst case an infringement procedure can be launched, and through the Plan for National Recovery and Resilience (PNRR). In order not to lose funds from the PNRR, six goals must be achieved in the justice section, and the zero priority with a deadline of this year is the introduction of amendments to the criminal codes in accordance with the decisions of the Constitutional Court, including the one about the special recipe.

Romania has met the conditions of the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (MCV) to monitor the judicial system so that it can be abolished and replaced by a rule of law mechanism, as is the case with all EU member states, the European Commission said in a report on the MCV published on Tuesday. However, the Commission states that it will take into account the comments of the Council as well as the European Parliament before taking a final decision, and will return to the matter in the case of Bulgaria and Romania in the near future. months

6 guidelines for equity in PNRR. Their failure means the loss of European money

However, the European Commission will continue to monitor Romania in the area of ​​justice, and the goals it has to achieve are included in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). If it does not achieve these goals, our country will lose European funding.

6 milestones in the PNRR on equity:

• 1. Implementation of the three laws on justice – the Law on the High Council of Magistrates, the Law on the Judiciary and the Law on the Status of Judges and Prosecutors – promulgated by President Klaus Iohannis on November 15 (the first assessment by the EC will be made in the spring)
• 2. Amendments to the criminal codes in accordance with the decisions of the Criminal Code (it is also necessary to provide for a special provision). The deadline is until the end of this year.
• 3. Implementation of the strategy for the development of the judicial system, which is aimed at solving the problem of staffing the system, which suffered from the new wave of retirement of judges and prosecutors.
• 4. Consolidation of the normative and legal framework regarding integrity – the activity of the National Integrity Agency (NAD).
• 5. The work of the National Directorate for the Prevention of Corruption – completion of the personnel scheme to 85% against 79% now.
• 6. Construction of four warehouses for the National Agency for the Management of Undisclosed Assets (NAMBI), which has nowhere to store assets obtained through criminal means and seized.

At what stage are the Criminal Codes?

Priority zero is the introduction of amendments to the Criminal Code with a deadline of December 31 in the PNRR.

Justice Minister Katalin Predoyu said at a press conference on Wednesday that two draft amendments to the Criminal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code were drafted by the Ministry of Justice, they also received the opinion of the CSM, even if it was not necessary, and they were also approved by other ministries. They must be considered by the ruling coalition, which will “soon” submit them to the parliament for adoption. “I am convinced that the parliament will take into account the deadline in the PNRR,” Predoyu said.

He claimed that the period of non-loss of European funds can be exceeded until the first payment demand for European money, in the case of the criminal code until March.

Justice monitoring will continue both through the PNRR, where money is lost if the 6 targets are not met, and through the rule of law mechanism, where, in the worst case, an infringement procedure can be launched if the importance given to European treaties, such as the independence of the judiciary.

The Minister of Justice explained that monitoring through these two mechanisms will be carried out by the European Commission through two different groups of experts.