Covid-19 emergency measures pose a ‘risk of abuse of power’

Civil Liberties Committee of European Parliament urges the European Commission to evaluate “first wave” national measures to assess their impact on citizens’ rights and freedoms.

On Tuesday, the Civil Liberties Committee approved a draft resolution that takes stock of the state of European values in the context of national measures taken to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic, with 50 votes to 11 and three abstentions.

MEPs concluded that national emergency measures pose a risk of abuse of power and stressed that any measure affecting democracy, the rule of law, and fundamental rights must be necessary, proportional and time-limited. They call on governments to consider terminating their state of emergency or at least to clearly define the delegation of powers to their executives, and to ensure that appropriate parliamentary and judicial checks and balances are in place.

MEPs urge the Commission to conduct an evaluation of “first wave” measures, in addition to the initial comments included in its first annual rule of law report, and emphasize the need for a permanent, effective monitoring mechanism.

(WBJ)