On 21st January 2014 the European Commission announced the Report on Progress under the Co-operation and Verification Mechanism in Bulgaria. The report states the Commission’s analysis on the steps Bulgaria has been undertaken in the past eighteen months and indicates the sectors where additional measures are needed.
What does the report say?
The report concludes that since the Commission's last report in July 2012 Bulgaria has taken a few steps forward. There have been some improvements in appointment procedures, some useful managerial steps by the Prosecutor General and some progress by the Supreme Judicial Council on the workload issue.
However, overall progress has not yet been sufficient and remains fragile. Repeated controversies such as appointments having to be aborted due to integrity issues, the escape from justice of convicted leaders of organised crime and a succession of revelations about political influence on the judicial system have affected public confidence. There remain very few cases where crimes of corruption or organised crime have been brought to conclusion in court.
These are issues at the heart of the modernisation of Bulgarian society: for reform to succeed, it needs a consistent and coherent approach based on a broad consensus in Bulgarian society. The fact that this period included three different governments has not helped to build this consensus, though events have also illustrated a widespread public aspiration for reform.
The report contains a number of specific recommendations in the areas of independence, accountability and integrity of the judiciary; reform of the judicial system; efficiency of the judicial system; corruption; and organised crime.
What are the next steps?
The Commission considers that Bulgaria now needs to speed up reform and to demonstrate a strong track record in all areas. The next formal report is likely to come in around one year's time in order to allow the time required to assess tangible results. Between now and then, the Commission will monitor progress closely and on a continuous basis with regular missions, as well as frequent dialogue with the Bulgarian authorities and with other Member States.
The Commission believes that the monitoring process of the CVM, the opportunities provided by EU funds and the constructive engagement of the Commission and many Member States continues to be a valuable support to reform in Bulgaria. The Commission invites Bulgaria to accelerate progress on its recommendations on the reform of the judiciary, integrity and the fight against corruption and organised crime.
Where can the report be found?
The report is available on the following website: http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/secretariat_general/cvm/index_en.htm