Brussels will be able to block budget payments to rogue EU governments that undermine the rule of law or the independence of judges, under a hard-fought agreement between the European parliament and member states. In what was described as the “end of a painful phase” for the EU, a provisional deal has been struck, which will allow a qualified majority of member states to impose sanctions where governments fail to maintain democratic standards. Procedures under article 7 of the EU treaties were launched against Poland in 2017 and Hungary in 2018 over alleged attempts by the governments to undermine the independence of their judges. But the current system requires unanimity among the member states before sanctions, such as the removal of voting rights in Brussels, can be imposed. The rightwing governments in Poland and Hungary have said they will protect each other from such measures. Under the new mechanism, there would be greater accountability over EU payments through removal of that veto. The European commission will establish whether any principles have been violated and then propose sanctions. A suspension of payments from the bloc’s seven-year budget and coronavirus recovery fund could be enforced in response to “breaches of the principles … Continue reading Deal struck to allow EU to block budget payments to rogue members