Editorial & Advertiser disclosure

Global Banking and Finance Review is an online platform offering news, analysis, and opinion on the latest trends, developments, and innovations in the banking and finance industry worldwide. The platform covers a diverse range of topics, including banking, insurance, investment, wealth management, fintech, and regulatory issues. The website publishes news, press releases, opinion and advertorials on various financial organizations, products and services which are commissioned from various Companies, Organizations, PR agencies, Bloggers etc. These commissioned articles are commercial in nature. This is not to be considered as financial advice and should be considered only for information purposes. It does not reflect the views or opinion of our website and is not to be considered an endorsement or a recommendation. We cannot guarantee the accuracy or applicability of any information provided with respect to your individual or personal circumstances. Please seek Professional advice from a qualified professional before making any financial decisions. We link to various third-party websites, affiliate sales networks, and to our advertising partners websites. When you view or click on certain links available on our articles, our partners may compensate us for displaying the content to you or make a purchase or fill a form. This will not incur any additional charges to you. To make things simpler for you to identity or distinguish advertised or sponsored articles or links, you may consider all articles or links hosted on our site as a commercial article placement. We will not be responsible for any loss you may suffer as a result of any omission or inaccuracy on the website.

Home > Top Stories > Polish top court rejects government plan to overhaul public media

Polish top court rejects government plan to overhaul public media

Published by Jessica Weisman-Pitts

Posted on January 18, 2024

3 min read

Last updated: January 31, 2026

Polish Constitutional Tribunal ruling against media overhaul plan - Global Banking & Finance Review — The image depicts the Polish Constitutional Tribunal, which recently ruled against the government's plan to overhaul public media, citing legality issues. This ruling underscores the ongoing political tensions in Poland regarding media independence and governance.

Polish top court rejects government plan to overhaul public media

By Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk

WARSAW (Reuters) – A top Polish court rejected as illegal on Thursday plans to liquidate the country’s state radio, television and news agency which the new pro-EU coalition government said had become propaganda outlets for the previous right-wing administration.

The Constitutional Tribunal’s ruling underlines the challenges Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s coalition faces in rolling back reforms introduced by the previous Law and Justice (PiS) cabinet.

Poland’s culture ministry swiftly branded the ruling invalid due to what it said were irregularities in the hiring of the Tribunal’s judges, all of them appointed under PiS, exacerbating a conflict between the Tusk government and supporters and allies of the former ruling party, who include President Andrzej Duda.

The ministry also evoked past resolutions by the European Court of Human Rights saying that the Tribunal as currently set up was “not an independent and impartial” court and that its rulings therefore “do not have universally binding force”.

Its stance further fuels the legal confusion and it was not immediately clear how the situation might be resolved.

In its ruling, the Tribunal said any decisions on public broadcasting companies should be based on the Broadcasting Act and not on the Code of Commercial Companies, thus making the minister’s decisions invalid.

“The right to dismiss members of the management (of state media outlets) lies solely with the National Media Council,” it added, referring to an institution created under PiS and manned by several of its current or former lawmakers.

ACCUSATIONS

Tusk’s government accuses PiS of packing courts, regulatory bodies and other institutions with its supporters during its eight-year rule, when it often drew criticism from the European Union over rule of law concerns.

The EU froze billions of euros in funds earmarked for Poland and Tusk has vowed to reverse the PiS government’s judicial reforms in order to unblock that cash.

PiS argued at the time that it had the right to overhaul national institutions in line with its democratic mandate and it accused the EU of exceeding its powers.

While many lawyers share doubts about the validity of verdicts issued by the Tribunal in its current lineup, however, some such as the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights have also questioned the legality of the ministry’s moves on public media.

Poland’s culture minister announced in December he was moving to liquidate the state television, radio and news agency after President Duda vetoed the new government’s spending plans for public media financing.

Polish state TV, radio and the PAP news agency are still functioning but with new programmes and journalists. The government has signalled that after liquidation it wants to recreate them as new legal entities under fresh management.

The clash over the government’s right to liquidate the public media companies is just one of several between the current and previous administrations.

Two former PiS ministers went on hunger strike this month after being jailed for abuse of power in previous roles. Former interior minister Mariusz Kaminski described himself as a “political prisoner”.

Tusk’s government and its supporters say this is nonsense and say they are determined to bring Poland back into line with EU democratic standards and unblock the frozen funds after years of conflict between Warsaw and Brussels.

(Reporting by Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk; Editing by Gareth Jones)