The Commission’s 2025 Rule of Law report – annual report 2025

Wording as published by the EP, in English.

1. Amendment 1Adopted

   Paragraph 13

   Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

   … prosecutors as a key factor in maintaining public confidence in criminal justice; Added: condemns the abuse of amnesties and pardons for the benefit of politicians, as it threatens the principle of equality before the law; highlights its concern about repeated attacks on judges and prosecutors who are …

2. Amendment 2Rejected

   Paragraph 65 a (new)

   Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

   Added: 65a. Expresses concern that direct EU funding to media organisations may create financial dependencies that risk undermining editorial independence; calls for the EU institutions to establish strict safeguards for such funding, including full transparency of allocation procedures, political neutrality and guarantees that no funding is made contingent upon adherence to specific political viewpoints or editorial lines;

3. Amendment 3Rejected

   Paragraph 77

   Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

   77. Removed: Calls on the Member States to establish frameworks that guarantee people’s freedom to seek, receive and impart information, and to ensure that national coordinators under Added: Strongly condemns any attempt by EU institutions to control political discourse on social media through the Digital Services Act Removed: (DSA) can fully perform their role in facilitating information exchange and cooperation at EU level; underlines the importance of timely and effective implementation of the DSA to ensure a safe, transparent, and accountable online environment; Added: (DSA); expresses grave concern that content moderation practices and the use of politically biased fact checkers undermine democratic debate and contribute to self-censorship; calls on the Removed: Member States to ensure that the transposition of Directive (EU) 2016/343 on the presumption of innocence fully respects freedom of expression and information as guaranteed by Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Article 11 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, and does not introduce restrictions on reporting on matters of public interest; Added: Commission to substantially amend the DSA with a view to restoring Member States’ primary responsibility over legal content and ensuring full respect for freedom of expression, the right to information and political pluralism;

4. Amendment 4Rejected

   Paragraph 86 a (new)

   Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

   Added: 86a. Expresses deep concern about evidence and reports suggesting that certain civil society organisations have engaged in illegal actions, including aiding and abetting illegal migration and cooperating with human smuggling networks; underlines the fact that NGOs that systematically violate national and international law pose a serious threat to the rule of law and must be held accountable through effective enforcement mechanisms;

5. Amendment 5Rejected

   Paragraph 91

   Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

   91. Removed: Stresses that transparency and accountability in the use of EU funds are vital components of the rule of law; stresses that reporting obligations and transparency should be in place to ensure that EU money is well spent, while avoiding unnecessary burdens on organisations; considers that the current EU legislation on scrutiny, due diligence and transparency constitutes a solid basis, and underlines that the EU should remain ready to review and reinforce the framework should shortcomings be identified; calls on the Member States and Added: Expresses grave concern about the lack of transparency regarding EU funding to NGOs; notes with concern reports that the Commission has financed NGOs for campaigns, public advocacy and litigation, including activities aimed at influencing regulatory outcomes in favour of specific policy objectives, without public disclosure of contractual arrangements or funding criteria; stresses that substantial amounts are disbursed annually to NGOs without publication of contracts, transparent allocation mechanisms or adequate oversight, creating risks of political instrumentalisation of taxpayer money and conflicts of interest; calls on the Commission to ensure Removed: the allocation of adequate and sustainable financial resources for civil society organisations and human rights defenders, in accordance with clear eligibility criteria and oversight mechanisms that would fully comply with existing transparency, accountability and spending rules, particularly in the context of shrinking civic space and increasing administrative burdens; in this regard, considers that the Commission and the Member States should provide adequate and consistent funding, matched to its objectives, for actors working to promote fundamental rights, democracy and the rule of law, and underlines that access to EU funding must be fair, transparent and non-discriminatory; recalls that funding decisions must be based on objective, transparent and non-discriminatory criteria, in accordance with the Treaties and the Financial Regulation, ensuring sound financial management and the protection of the EU’s financial interests; Added: full public disclosure of all EU funding to NGOs, including contract details, funding criteria and performance monitoring, and to refrain from financing activities that serve particular political objectives rather than the general public interest;

6. Amendment 6Rejected

   Paragraph 103

   Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

   … religious hatred, racism, xenophobia, and other forms of discrimination across the EU; Added: stresses that efforts to combat discrimination must explicitly address anti-white racism alongside all other forms of racism; expresses concern about growing insecurity and targeted hostility faced by local residents in certain areas, including in districts with high concentrations of third-country nationals; further underlines the rising number of anti-Christian acts across the EU; calls on Member States to ensure equal protection before the law for …

7. Amendment 7Rejected

   Paragraph 112

   Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

   112. Removed: Reiterates the obligation of Member States to respect EU and international law in the field of Added: Welcomes the fact that some Member States have adopted laws, policies and practices aimed at reducing illegal migratory flows to EU territory and restoring effective control of external borders, while ensuring compliance with applicable legal obligations; stresses that safeguarding the integrity of external borders is a prerequisite for maintaining the rule of law within the Union; underlines the fact that Member States must retain the ability to take necessary and proportionate measures to prevent illegal entry and to ensure the effective functioning of their migration and asylum Removed: on land and at sea; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure that migration and asylum policies, including the Pact on Migration and Asylum, are implemented in full compliance with the Charter, the principle of non-refoulment and the principle of responsibility-sharing to ensure that people’s rights to asylum and international protection are upheld; reiterates that practices such as stopping asylum seekers and forcibly returning them to the country they entered from without carrying out an individual assessment, arbitrary detention and obstruction of humanitarian aid are contrary to EU and international law; Added: systems;

8. Amendment 8Rejected

   Paragraph 113 a (new)

   Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

   Added: 113a. Stresses that upholding the rule of law also entails ensuring that return decisions are effectively carried out; recalls that Parliament, in its position on the proposed Return Regulation, highlights the fact that the external dimension is a crucial part of an effective return system; underlines, therefore, that trade, visa policies and development aid provided by the Union should be made conditional upon the level of cooperation of third countries on readmission and returns;

9. Amendment 9Rejected

   Paragraph 116

   Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

   … EU legislative proposal on combating rape as defined by the lack of Removed: consent, the full implementation of EU rules on violence against women, and the ratification of the Istanbul Convention by all Member States; expresses concern about anti-gender movements and disinformation undermining gender equality; Added: consent; notes that several Member States have reported significant changes in patterns of sexual violence over the past decade, including factors related to integration challenges and illegal migration flows; stresses that effective responses to gender-based violence must take full account of these developments and be based on a comprehensive, evidence-based analysis of all contributing factors, in order to ensure targeted and effective prevention measures;

10. Amendment 10Rejected

    Paragraph 126

    Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

    126. Removed: Urges Added: Calls on the Commission to Removed: take further action under the Rule of Law Conditionality Regulation in the case of Hungary as regards other breaches of the rule of law, such as those related to the judiciary; highlights that the weakening of the judicial system and of the independence and impartiality of public administration and undue supplier concentration in procurement procedures represent systemic rule of law risks that threaten sound financial management; stresses that violations of rules, manipulation of, or undue favouritism in calls for tender and applications involving EU funding, as well as administrative harassment breaching the equal treatment of local and regional authorities, companies or other final recipients or beneficiaries, and their access to Added: refrain from using the disbursement of EU funds as Removed: well as procurement, audit bodies, anti-corruption safeguards or control systems constitute direct risks to the EU budget and require consistent and stringent application of conditionality; Added: a political instrument to interfere in Member States’ democratic processes or to exert pressure on democratically elected governments; stresses the importance of a robust legal framework to prevent corruption and the misappropriation of EU funds, and of ensuring that it is applied equally, objectively and in a non-discriminatory manner across all Member States, irrespective of their governments’ political orientation;

11. Amendment 11Rejected

    Paragraph 168

    Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

    … EU-level interinstitutional dialogue and cooperation on the rule of law should be Removed: strengthened; regrets the fact that the Commission and the Council have so far rejected its offer to enter into an interinstitutional agreement on democracy, Added: strengthened by subjecting the EU institutions themselves to the same rule of law and anti-corruption scrutiny and accountability mechanisms applied to Member States, in order to ensure internal coherence and the credibility of the rule of law Removed: and fundamental rights; reaffirms its willingness to resume talks on this agreement, underlining the added value of a structured and predictable framework; stresses that the argument that such an agreement would be excessively rigid cannot justify inaction; calls for pragmatic solutions to already improve cooperation; calls on the Council to make its rule of law dialogue more inclusive by inviting representatives of other institutions such as the Venice Commission and Parliament; emphasises that the effectiveness of the expanded EU toolbox depends on coherent and consistent application across institutions; Added: framework;

12. Amendment 12Rejected

    Paragraph 185

    Tabled by Petra Steger, Marieke Ehlers, Jorge Buxadé Villalba · PfE

    185. Removed: Reiterates the findings and recommendations of its resolution of 25 November 2025 on the proposal for a Council decision determining, pursuant to Article 7(1) of the Treaty on European Union, the existence of a clear risk of a serious breach by Hungary of the values on which the Union is founded; takes note that the Commission has initiated an infringement procedure against Hungary for failure to comply with several provisions of the EMFA, as well as certain requirements under the Audiovisual Media Services Directives; underlines that, in her Opinion in Case C-829/24, Commission v Hungary, Advocate General Juliane Kokott considered that Hungary had infringed EU law by adopting legislation on the protection of national sovereignty, which may undermine fundamental Union principles, in particular regarding protection against foreign political interference; underlines that, in her Opinion in Case C-225/24, Parliament v Commission, Advocate General Tamara Ćapeta proposed that the CJEU annuls the Commission’s decision to lift the suspension of EU funds to Hungary, thereby raising concerns regarding compliance with Added: Expresses grave concern that rule of law Removed: conditionality; Added: mechanisms, including Article 7 proceedings and the Conditionality Regulation, risk being instrumentalised to exert political pressure on Member States whose policies diverge from particular political or ideological preferences, rather than being applied objectively on the basis of genuine violations of Article 2 TEU values; calls on the Commission to refrain from using the rule of law framework as a pretext to interfere in policy areas that fall within Member State competence;

13. Amendment 13Rejected

    Paragraph 155 a (new)

    Tabled by Juan Fernando López Aguilar · S&D

    Added: 155a. Reiterates that the comprehensive interinstitutional mechanism should be supported by an impartial and independent monitoring body, composed of independent legal, academic and human rights experts, tasked with monitoring rule of law developments in the Member States and providing regular assessments, recommendations and early warnings to the Commission; highlights the particular relevance, for the purposes of this exercise, of reports and data from FRA and other EU bodies, offices and agencies, as well as from the Venice Commission and the Group of States against Corruption; calls on the Commission to enhance and strengthen its cooperation with EU and international bodies, such as the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the United Nations, to promote and defend democracy, the rule of law, fundamental freedoms and human rights;

14. Amendment 14Rejected

    Recital R

    Tabled by Mariusz Kamiński · ECR

    … half of the respondents know where to report a case of corruption; Added: whereas the Commission, in its Eurobarometer surveys, previously assessed public perceptions of corruption within the EU institutions, but has discontinued the publication of such data despite numerous serious scandals; 54 European Commission, ‘Special Eurobarometer 561: Citizens’ attitudes towards corruption in the …

15. Amendment 15Rejected

    Paragraph 38

    Tabled by Mariusz Kamiński · ECR

    … fully apply the principles of good governance, including transparency, accountability, and integrity; Added: calls on the Commission to resume, within its Eurobarometer surveys, the publication of data on public perceptions of corruption not only at national, regional and local levels, but also within the EU institutions – the publication of which the Commission has discontinued, despite numerous serious scandals in the EU institutions;

16. Amendment 16Rejected

    Paragraph 44

    Tabled by Mariusz Kamiński · ECR

    … thereof, early warning systems, and clear rules on conflict-of-interest and revolving-door practices; Added: stresses that the deliberate failure by any high-level public official to comply with these obligations, in particular the Minister for Justice of a Member State, is unacceptable, and therefore condemns a situation where, instead of fully disclosing substantial assets and dispelling all doubts as to their origin, a high-level public official has chosen to attack public officials and journalists who have raised this matter, thereby failing to set an example of integrity and instead contributing to a climate of opacity and the erosion of anti-corruption rules;

17. Amendment 17Rejected

    Paragraph 55

    Tabled by Mariusz Kamiński · ECR

    … frame so as not to foster a sense of impunity among citizens; Added: notes with concern instances of the persecution of public officials who have exposed corruption and contributed to the criminal conviction of high-level officials; considers such a policy of retaliation and revenge to be unacceptable;

18. Amendment 18Rejected

    Paragraph 10 a (new)

    Tabled by Nicolas Bay, Marion Maréchal, Laurence Trochu +1 · ECR

    Added: 10a. Emphasises that the impartiality of judges requires strict ideological neutrality and absolute restraint in expressing personal opinions; condemns any form of activism within the judiciary that transforms the role of the judge into a political tool, thereby undermining public trust in the judicial system; stresses that respect for the rule of law is incompatible with a system in which justice is perceived as a discretionary power lacking democratic oversight;

19. Amendment 19Rejected

    Paragraph 34 a (new)

    Tabled by Nicolas Bay, Marion Maréchal, Laurence Trochu +1 · ECR

    Added: 34a. Expresses concern about the growing trend of judicialisation in political life, which may lead to the neutralisation of opponents through judicial means; asserts that respect for the rule of law prohibits any instrumentalisation of the judicial system, whether by EU institutions or national authorities, that would interfere in electoral processes; believes that the judiciary should serve as a bulwark against arbitrariness and not as a tool for political combat circumventing the ballot box;

20. Amendment 20Rejected

    Paragraph 118 a (new)

    Tabled by Nicolas Bay, Marion Maréchal, Laurence Trochu +1 · ECR

    Added: 118a. Emphasises that the principle of conditionality should not be misused as a political tool to advance specific agendas; underlines that any application of conditionality must be based on objective criteria and transparent processes, to prevent the politicisation of EU funding;