European Parliament MEPs have called for tougher action to address continuing problems with the rule of law across the EU, after adopting a resolution on the European Commission’s 2025 Rule of Law Report.
The text was approved in plenary with 387 votes in favour, 191 against and 46 abstentions on Wednesday, according to the Parliament.
It says many of the Commission’s recommendations are repeated year after year, with 93% carried over from previous reports.
MEPs said courts, anti-corruption systems, media freedom, civil society space, equality and other democratic safeguards remain under pressure in several member states. They also said annual monitoring still under-reports serious structural threats.
On justice, MEPs warned about excessive political influence over judicial appointments, disciplinary bodies, promotions and how cases are assigned.
They called on member states to ensure justice systems are structurally independent, efficient and impartial, with adequate resources, free legal aid and safeguards against political pressure.
They also condemned what they described as political misuse of justice systems, including interference in corruption cases, politically motivated prosecutions, attacks on judges and prosecutors, and the abuse of amnesties and pardons.
MEPs called for stronger enforcement of rulings from the Court of Justice of the EU and the European Court of Human Rights, and asked the Commission to treat prison conditions as a rule of law issue.
Media freedom, corruption and civil society
MEPs said corruption is a serious threat to democracy and the rule of law, and argued that weak enforcement of existing legal tools can foster impunity.
They welcomed a new EU directive on combating corruption and called for stronger sanctions, specialised bodies and effective action on high-level cases, the Parliament reported.
The Parliament also called for full EU membership of GRECO — the Council of Europe’s anti-corruption monitoring body — and closer cooperation between EU bodies dealing with corruption.
On media freedom, MEPs said the killing of investigative journalists is a direct attack on the rule of law and raised concerns about threats, harassment and abusive lawsuits designed to deter reporting.
They also condemned the use of spyware and pointed to political interference, state-controlled advertising, concentrated media ownership and pressure on public service media.
MEPs warned against what they described as shrinking civic space through administrative burdens, funding cuts, smear campaigns and the criminalisation of organisations and human rights defenders. Any restrictions on civil society and the rights to assemble and associate must be justified and proportionate.
The resolution also linked rule of law issues to fundamental rights, listing concerns including discrimination, hate speech, racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, anti-LGBTIQ+ measures, gaps in minority rights, gender-based violence, and aspects of migration and asylum policy.
MEPs also warned EU funds may have been linked to rights violations and called for payments to be suspended where deficiencies persist.
Konstantinos Arvanitis, the Parliament’s rapporteur on the text, said it set out concerns about “irregularities” in member states and included “numerous concrete proposals for improvement”, according to the Parliament.
