Polish President Andrzej Duda has officially sent the proposed 2024 budget to the Constitutional Court. The decision to review the budget for compliance with Poland’s Constitution was taken due to concerns about the legitimacy of the adoption process. Two members of Parliament—Mariusz Kaminski and Maciej Wosik—were unable to take part in the discussions relating to the passing of these new bills due to their involvement in a corruption scandal.
Both Kaminski and Wosik, who were affiliated with the former Law and Justice (PiS) government were sentenced to two years in prison in December 2023 following accusations of abuse of power. This development resulted in the loss of their seats in Parliament.
The corruption charges originated from a case involving a corruption scandal that provoked Deputy Prime Minister Andrzej Lepper’s resignation and the eventual collapse of the PiS government in 2007. Although found guilty in 2015, President Andrzej Duda pardoned Kamiński and others involved, leading to Kamiński’s appointment as a minister.
In a turn of events in 2023, the Polish Supreme Court declared Duda’s 2015 pardon invalid as it was issued prior to the final conviction of Kamiński and Wosik. This led to their returned conviction and subsequent incarceration in December 2023 but were again pardoned by President Duda in January 2024.
A reaction to Duda’s decision came from Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who expressed on social media his satisfaction on the budget’s approval, affirming that the funds would reach the people as planned, unhindered by politics.
The 2024 budget proposes increases in salary for teachers (30%) and other civil servants (20%) along with a budget deficit projection of 184 billion zlotys (42.46 billion euros), The budget deficit, as compared to the 164.8 billion (38.03 billion euros) planned by PiS, follows from election propositions of the new ruling party. The predicted deficit in sectoral finances, using the EU methodology, is anticipated to measure 5.1 percent of the country’s GDP this year (1 zloty = 0.25 US dollars).
Unsurprisingly, the relations between the ruling coalition and the PiS party have proven strained. Since the new coalition ascended to power in late 2023, the PiS party has been urging their supporters to protest against the ruling Civic Coalition. The hostility between these two has surfaced frequently due to disagreements on legislative and judicial reform actions.