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Poland vows to stop EU's encroachment
Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has blasted the EU’s decision to start legal action against his country, saying that there must be a limit to Brussels’ powers.
The EU has announced on Wednesday that it would launch infringement proceedings against Poland and cited violation of the primacy of EU law as a reason.
The decision follows two rulings by Poland’s constitutional court that has given priority to Polish laws over those of the EU and concluded that certain parts of EU treaties conflicted with the country’s constitution.
“I think that more and more European Union member states notice that there must be a limit of competences somewhere, of those that can be decided by the European Union, and those by the Polish state,” Morawiecki said in a televised speech at a conference on Wednesday after the EU’s announcement.
In his opinion, the majority of European citizens would not want the EU to make decisions in certain areas, such as family law or inheritance law.The Polish prime minister added that the European Commission “continues to wade towards the lack of understanding of the division of competencies” between the member states and Brussels, which means that the growing tendency toward “bureaucratic centralism,” he said, “needs to be blocked somewhere.”
Warsaw has two months to reply to the European Commission’s letter about the legal action. Meanwhile tensions between Poland and the EU have already delayed the delivery of a multibillion-dollar Covid recovery package to the country. The European Commission has also imposed huge daily fines on Warsaw.
Beijing has announced that it will require people travelling to the city from low-risk areas of China to present a negative Covid-19 test, as part of a raft of measures introduced ahead of the Lunar New Year celebrations. The restrictions will come into effect on January 28 and last until March 15, covering both the Lunar New Year festivities and the annual parliament meeting that occurs in the city. People who enter Beijing will have to undergo a 14-day health observation period, with a test taken on the seventh and 14th day after their arrival. The spokesperson for Beijing’s city government, Xu Hejian, announced the new measures on Wednesday, over fears that travel during the holiday period could see people spread the virus around the country, causing a spike in cases. In recent weeks, areas around Beijing have seen Covid-19 restrictions increased since the start of the year, as authorities took a ‘wartime mode’ approach to prevent a wider outbreak occurring in Shijiazhuang ...
The Italian government is reportedly set to announce an easing of Covid-19 restrictions in certain regions despite warnings from health experts that it is too soon to relax measures designed to control the spread of the virus. Veneto, near Venice, Calabria in the south, and Emilia-Romagna in the north of the country are all expected to be downgraded from 'orange' to 'yellow' zones, according to local reports. The move would allow bars and restaurants to reopen, as well giving residents more freedom to move around their areas. The World Health Organization, however, has warned that it is "too early to ease up," as there is "still [a] very high" presence of the virus in the country. A public health expert who advises the Italian health minister has echoed this note of caution, telling AFP that Italy was "bucking the trend," while other European nations remain in lockdown and some are even considering stricter measures. Also on rt.com ...
Australia’s defense chief has been awarded tens of thousands of dollars in damages after claiming that a six-word Twitter post caused him deep “hurt and distress,” with a judge ruling that the tweet was defamatory. An Australian court agreed to award $25,000 (AU$35,000) to Defense Minister Peter Dutton on Wednesday over the brief Twitter post, far below the maximum limit allowed under the law, as the judge determined the official had been libeled, but not in a way that impacted his day-to-day life. Though the tweet in question “was no doubt a serious defamation,” Dutton “did not claim to have suffered more serious consequences by reason of the publication of the tweet or even that his hurt and distress had continued to the date of trial,” Judge Richard White said in his ruling. READ MORE: ‘Mesmerisingly clueless’: Aussie defense chief roasted for cringeworthy attempts to elbow-bump Korean counterpart (VIDEO) Originally posted in February by immigration activist Shane Bazzi an...
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