Confirmation hearings of the Commissioners-designate: Michael McGrath – Democracy, Justice and Rule of Law

Table of Contents

• Michael McGrath 1
• Democracy, Justice and Rule of Law 1
• Confirmation hearing due to be held on Tuesday 5 November, at 09.00. 1
• European Parliament committees responsible: Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE), Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) and Legal Affairs (JURI). 1
• Michael McGrath (born in 1976), is an Irish politician, a member of the Fianna Fáil party, which belongs to the Renew Europe group in the European Parliament. He holds a bachelor's degree in commerce from University College Cork (1997). 1
• Most recently, he was minister for finance (2022-2024) and before that, minister for public expenditure and reform (2020-2022). 1
• McGrath has been a member of the lower house of the Irish Parliament (the Oireachtas) for the Cork South-Central constituency since 2007. 1
• Between 2011 and 2020 he was lead opposition spokesperson on finance on behalf of Fianna Fáil. Before joining the Irish Parliament, McGrath was an elected local government representative on Cork County Council (2004-2007) and Passage West Town Council (1999-2007). 1
• McGrath's professional experience includes being head of management information and systems at University College Cork (2003-2005), financial controller at RedFM (2001-2003), and a chartered accountant at KPMG (1997-2001), as well as a board member of Léargas (2000-2007). 1
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• This is one of a set of briefings designed to give an overview of issues of interest relating to the portfolios of the Commissionersdesignate. All these briefings can be found at: https://epthinktank.eu/commissioner_hearings_2024. 1
• Fundamentals of the portfolio 2
• The newly created portfolio for Democracy, Justice and Rule of Law – assigned by Commission President-elect Ursula von der Leyen to Michael McGrath – expands the previous Justice portfolio held by Didier Reynders. In addition to the previously included areas of rule of law, judicial cooperation, consumer protection and data protection, it now includes democracy and fundamental rights. 2
• In her mission letter, von der Leyen asks McGrath to maintain dialogue with Parliament on its indirect legislative initiatives under Article 225 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU), as well as to organise, within 100 days of taking office, the first edition of a youth policy dialogue. McGrath will be responsible for reducing reporting burdens on businesses by at least 25 % (35 % as regards small and medium-sized enterprises). He is tasked with organising two implementation dialogues per year involving stakeholders, and preparing an annual implementation and enforcement report in his areas of responsibility. In the area of democracy, McGrath will be responsible for the European democracy shield, combating foreign information interference and disinformation, maintaining the fairness and integrity of elections and ensuring media independence. He will also be responsible for setting up a civil society platform to strengthen civil society, activists and human rights defenders. 2
• In the area of fundamental rights he will be in charge of monitoring the application of the EU Charter and EU accession to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), as well as overseeing the functioning of the European arrest warrant. 2
• In the area of the rule of law, McGrath will be in charge of the Commission's annual rule of law reports and is specifically tasked with adding a single market dimension to the report. He will work with the Commissioner for Budget, Anti-Fraud and Public Administration in developing a European anti-corruption approach and ensuring that respect for the rule of law is a precondition for obtaining access to EU funds. 2
• In the area of company law, he will be in charge of developing a harmonised set of rules for EU companies (a European '28th regime' on top of the 27 legal systems of the Member States). 2
• In the area of consumer policy, he will lead in developing the next consumer agenda 2025-2030, and in the area of data protection he will be in charge of overseeing the enforcement of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). He will also be in charge of preparing a Digital Fairness Act to tackle unethical digital techniques and commercial practices. Finally, he will reflect on the possible expansion of the sphere of powers of the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO). 2
• Priorities and challenges 2
• Expectations/public opinion 2
• In a 2023 Eurobarometer survey on democracy, only 10 % of EU citizens polled were 'very satisfied' with the way democracy worked in their country, while a further 37 % were 'somewhat satisfied', and the majority (51 %) were not satisfied. They stated that the two main threats to democracy were false and/or misleading information (38 %) and growing distrust and scepticism towards democratic institutions (32 %). In a 2024 Eurobarometer survey on the rule of law, the vast majority of EU citizens polled (89 %) found it important that all Member States respect EU values, including the rule of law, and 86 % considered it important that media and civil society organisations in all other EU Member States be able to operate freely and without pressure. A clear majority (72 %) believed that the EU plays an important role in helping uphold the rule of law in their country. However, a June 2024 Eurobarometer survey found that EU citizens were not fully satisfied with the quality of judicial independence in their Member States – with as many as 37 % of them finding it bad or even very bad. In a 2024 special Eurobarometer survey on the Digital Decade respondents specified misuse of personal data (46 %) and fake news and disinformation (45 %) as issues having the biggest personal impact. In the framework of the Conference on the Future of Europe (2021-2022), citizens voiced expectations concerning the EU's role in the area of justice and the rule of law, with several contributions highlighting the need for stronger EU action to uphold the rule of law, and calling for a high level of data protection and stringent implementation. 2
• A flagship initiative in the area of democracy will be the European democracy shield aimed at countering foreign information manipulation and interference online. In her address to the European Parliament on 18 July 2024, von der Leyen stated that 'the Shield will take into account recommendations from the work of the special committees on foreign interference, to better protect our democracies'. Forthcoming challenges include the application and policing of online content in line with the requirements of the Digital Services Act and the Artificial Intelligence Act. Regarding the rule of law, the latest rule of law report (July 2024) revealed that many Member States still have a lot to accomplish when it comes to ensuring the independence of the judiciary and prosecution services. Some Member States are actually facing a deteriorating situation concerning media freedom, checks and balances and the space for civil society. In the area of civil law, in 2022 the Commission published a proposal for a directive on adapting non-contractual civil liability rules to ensure an adequate level of protection for persons harmed by artificial intelligence (AI) systems (the AI liability directive). The EPPO has yet to unleash its full potential, and there are ongoing discussions about expanding its area of competence. 3
• European Parliament 3
• Treaty basis and European Parliament competence 3
• Democracy and the rule of law – two of the EU's fundamental values – are enshrined in Articles 2 and 7 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU). The rule of law is also enshrined in Article 19 TEU as a requirement for effective judicial protection, and in Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights as a fundamental right. Article 6(2) TEU obliges the EU to become a party to the European Convention on Human Rights. Article 10(1) TEU states that the EU is founded on representative democracy. Parliament has the authority to trigger Article 7 TEU proceedings if a Member State is in breach of any one of the EU values, including the rule of law. In the areas of civil justice and private international law (Article 81 Treaty on the Functioning of the EU, TFEU), the ordinary legislative procedure (OLP) applies, except for legislation concerning family law matters, where a special legislative procedure (SLP) applies. Criminal justice falls under Articles 82-86 TFEU (OLP, with the exception of Article 86 on the EPPO – SLP, enhanced cooperation). Both in the case of criminal procedure (Article 82) and substantive criminal law (Article 83), brake/accelerator clauses apply. EU action in the area of data protection is based on Article 16 TFEU (OLP). Consumer protection laws, as well as certain civil procedure laws, are adopted on the basis of Article 114 TFEU (OLP). 3
• During its 2019-2024 term, the Parliament established two successive temporary parliamentary committees on foreign interference in democratic processes in the EU, including disinformation. In resolutions adopted in March 2022 and June 2023, respectively, Parliament called for a common strategy to deal with foreign interference and disinformation campaigns, including by supporting independent media channels, fact-checkers and researchers. Again during its previous term, Parliament supported the Commission's efforts to uphold the rule of law and called for more action on its part, also with regard to the primacy of EU law (resolution of 21 November 2023). 3
• Parliament has also closely monitored the Commission's implementation of the General Conditionality Regulation and the oversight of progress on the rule of law in the context of recovery and resilience plans. In its most recent resolution of 18 January 2024, Parliament criticised the Commission for unblocking Hungary's Recovery and Resilience Facility funds despite ongoing concerns about that Member State's rule of law record. Parliament's concern for data protection and privacy is also reflected in a range of recommendations, resolutions and mission reports. It drew firm conclusions about the abuse of spyware in the EU, objected to the Commission's draft adequacy decisions for the United States and the United Kingdom, and has called repeatedly for stringent implementation of the GDPR. Parliament has also systematically commented on the annual rule of law reports. In its recent resolution on the third rule of law report (2023), Parliament welcomed the addition of country-specific recommendations but called once again on the Commission to expand the scope of its reporting to cover all values enshrined in Article 2 TEU and the entire rule of law checklist of the Council of Europe's Venice Commission. It also urged the Commission to enter into negotiations on an interinstitutional agreement creating an EU mechanism on democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights. 3
• Recent developments 4
• The outgoing Commission's term saw numerous initiatives in various areas covered by this portfolio. In the area of media freedom, these initiatives included the adoption of the anti-SLAPP Directive to protect journalists and activists from abusive litigation, and the European Media Freedom Act to safeguard EU journalists and media from political or economic interference. In the area of justice cooperation, initiatives include the adoption of rules on the e-CODEX platform and on digitalisation of judicial cooperation. The area of criminal justice was reinforced through the launch of the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO). 4
• In the area of digital policies, the EU legislature adopted the Digital Services Act, which imposes asymmetric obligations on very large online platforms and search engines, particularly regarding the removal of illegal online content related to foreign interference, misinformation or content harmful to minors. Adopted in 2024, the Artificial Intelligence Act (AIA) lays down harmonised rules on artificial intelligence (AI), including clear requirements and obligations for specific uses of AI. One of the AIA's objectives is to enable users to identify AI-generated content that includes deep fake audio and video, which must be labelled as such. 4
• Regarding data protection, the Commission tabled a proposal on GDPR procedural rules to streamline the handling of cross-border cases across the EU. In consumer law, the Commission adopted a report on the implementation of the directive on the better enforcement and modernisation of Union consumer protection rules. Additionally, work is ongoing on a review of the Consumer Protection Cooperation Regulation. A report on the outcome of the fitness check of EU consumer law in the context of digital fairness, published on 3 October 2024, focuses on directives related to unfair commercial practices, consumer rights and unfair terms. 4
• Finally, technical negotiations on EU accession to the ECHR were finalised in March 2023. 4
• FURTHER READING 4
• Diaz Crego M. and Mańko R., Protecting EU shared values: How the European Parliament is responding to citizens' expectations, EPRS, European Parliament, April 2022. 4
• Diaz Crego M. et al., Protecting EU common values within the Member States: An overview of monitoring, prevention and enforcement mechanisms at EU level, EPRS, European Parliament, 2020. 4
• European Parliament, McGrath hearing documents and CV, 2024. 4
• Madiega T., Digital services act, EPRS, European Parliament, November 2022. 4
• Madiega T., Generative AI and watermarking, EPRS, European Parliament, December 2023. 4
• Mańko R., The European Commission's annual rule of law report: From a monitoring tool to a comprehensive recommendations mechanism?, EPRS, European Parliament, March 2023. 4
• DISCLAIMER AND COPYRIGHT 4
• This document is prepared for, and addressed to, the Members and staff of the European Parliament as background material to assist them in their parliamentary work. The content of the document is the sole responsibility of its author(s) and any opinions expressed herein should not be taken to represent an official position of the Parliament. 4
• Reproduction and translation for non-commercial purposes are authorised, provided the source is acknowledged and the European Parliament is given prior notice and sent a copy. 4
• © European Union, 2024. 4
• Photo credits: © European Union, 2024; EC - Audiovisual Service, Christophe Licoppe. 4
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