The Commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders, insisted again this Monday in a meeting with the Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, on the urgency of carrying out the renewal of the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ) and immediately after launch the reform of its designation system, a claim that Brussels asks to take place before Spain assumes the rotating presidency of the EU next July.
On a trip to the European capital that was not announced until the day before, Bolaños had the opportunity to meet in two consecutive meetings with Commissioner Reynders and with the Vice President of the European Commission responsible for the rule of law, Vera Jourova.
In both cases they have dealt with the preparation work for the rotating presidency that Spain will assume in a few months but, as confirmed by both Brussels and Moncloa, also the way in which the country is following up on the recommendations of the annual report on democratic health of the Twenty-seven in which the Community Executive urged Spain to resolve the blockade in the CGPJ.
Community sources describe the meetings as “good” but without significant “advances” on the issues that still concern the European Commission and that the community services will evaluate again when the next edition of the annual report on the rule of law is published, at the end of June or early July.
In its edition last year, Brussels for the first time included specific recommendations by country, including the call for Spain to assume the renewal of the governing body of judges as a “priority” matter and, “immediately afterwards”, launch the process to reform its election system, so that at least half of the members are chosen by the judges themselves, in line with European standards.
In this context, Brussels has transferred to the minister the interest that Spain complies with this recommendation “before the presidency”, although community sources consulted by Europa Press recall that this message was already transferred by Reynders to his interlocutors when he traveled to Spain and met with the government, the opposition and other interested parties.
In a statement, Moncloa has reported that in his contacts with Reynders and Jourova, Bolaños has explained that the Government and the Popular Party reached an agreement to renew the CGPJ “following the recommendations of the Commission itself”; at the same time that he has reiterated the “commitment of the Government with the observance of the Constitution and shown his desire that the PP sign the agreement already negotiated”.
Asked at a press conference about the Bolaños meetings, the spokesman for the Community Executive responsible for Justice and the Rule of Law, Christian Wigand, limited himself to stressing that the position of Brussels “is well known” and remains unchanged with respect to the urgency of unlocking the renewal of the CGPJ.
Regarding the role that Brussels can play in this context, beyond its annual evaluation, Wigand has said that community services are always “optimistic” and favorable to dialogue.
“It is important to continue the discussions and we remain available to support the dialogue, but of course the solution must be found in Spain,” he concluded.
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