On the request for the waiver of the immunity of Grzegorz Braun

(2024/2102(IMM))

The European Parliament,

–having regard to the request for the waiver of the immunity of Grzegorz Braun by the Prosecutor General of Poland, dated 29 October 2024, transmitting a request submitted by the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw, in connection with criminal proceedings brought against Grzegorz Braun, and announced in plenary on 14 November 2024,

–having regard to the fact that Grzegorz Braun is deemed to have renounced his right to be heard under Rule 9(6) of its Rules of Procedure,

–having regard to Articles 8 and 9 of Protocol No 7 on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union, and Article 6(2) of the Act of 20 September 1976 concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage,

–having regard to the judgments of the Court of Justice of the European Union of 21 October 2008, 19 March 2010, 6 September 2011, 17 January 2013, 19 December 2019 and 5 July 2023,

–having regard to Article 105(2) and (5) of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland,

–having regard to Rule 5(2), Rule 6(1) and Rule 9 of its Rules of Procedure,

–having regard to the report of the Committee on Legal Affairs (A10-0081/2025),

A.whereas, by letter dated 29 October 2024, the Prosecutor General of Poland transmitted a request for the waiver of the immunity of Grzegorz Braun, submitted by the Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw, in relation to several alleged offences that occurred in 2022 and 2023;

B.whereas, according to the request, on 1 March 2022, in the building of the National Institute of Cardiology – State Research Institute, Grzegorz Braun allegedly violated the bodily integrity of a public official who was acting in his capacity as Director of the National Institute of Cardiology, during and in connection with the performance of official duties by this public official; whereas the alleged actions constitute an offence under Article 222(1) of the Polish Criminal Code, concurrently with Article 191(1) of the Polish Criminal Code in conjunction with Article 11(2) of that Code;

C.whereas, on 1 March 2022, Grzegorz Braun allegedly insulted the Director of the National Institute of Cardiology, during and in connection with the performance of official duties by this public official, by making accusations against him and by streaming the events over the internet, which could allegedly have damaged the official’s public reputation and rendered likely a loss of the necessary trust placed in him to perform his role as Director of the National Institute of Cardiology and exercise the profession of doctor; whereas the alleged actions constitute an offence under Article 226(1) of the Polish Criminal Code, concurrently with Article 212(1) and (2) of the Polish Criminal Code in conjunction with Article 11(2) of that Code;

D.whereas, on 27 January 2023, Grzegorz Braun allegedly damaged a Christmas tree and destroyed decorations that were the property of two Polish associations whose offices were in the building of the Regional Court in Kraków, and whereas causing such damage constitutes an offence under Article 288(1) of the Polish Criminal Code;

E.whereas, on 30 May 2023, at the headquarters of the German Historical Institute in Warsaw, Grzegorz Braun allegedly damaged property belonging to the German Historical Institute, which constitutes an offence under Article 288(1) of the Polish Criminal Code;

F.whereas, on 30 May 2023, Grzegorz Braun allegedly failed to leave the headquarters of the German Historical Institute despite being asked to do so by an authorised person, which constitutes an offence under Article 193(1) of the Polish Criminal Code;

G.whereas, on 12 December 2023, within the premises of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Grzegorz Braun allegedly publicly insulted a group of people on the grounds of their religious affiliation and allegedly publicly insulted an object of religious worship (a menorah) by extinguishing its lit candles with a fire extinguisher, thereby allegedly offending the religious sentiments of Jews, which constitutes an offence under Article 257 of the Polish Criminal Code, concurrently with Articles 195(1) and 196 of the Polish Criminal Code in conjunction with Article 11(2) of that Code;

H.whereas, on 12 December 2023, within the premises of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Grzegorz Braun allegedly violated the bodily integrity of an aggrieved party who intervened with a view to protecting public order, by aiming at the aggrieved party the spray from a fire extinguisher containing a powdery substance; whereas Grzegorz Braun allegedly caused minor damage, lasting up to seven days, to the health of the aggrieved party, which constitutes an offence under Article 157(2) of the Polish Criminal Code, concurrently with Article 217a of the Polish Criminal Code in conjunction with Article 11(2) of that Code;

I.whereas the investigation carried out in connection with the alleged offences outlined in the waiver request was initially opened on 25 May 2023, at which time Grzegorz Braun enjoyed immunity as a Member of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland; whereas on 17 January 2024, the Sejm of the Republic of Poland granted consent for criminal charges to be brought against Grzegorz Braun in connection with the offences outlined in the request; whereas Grzegorz Braun was elected to the European Parliament in the European elections in June 2024; whereas Grzegorz Braun was therefore not a Member of the European Parliament at the time of the alleged offences;

J.whereas the alleged offences and the subsequent request for the waiver of his immunity are not related to an opinion expressed or a vote cast by Grzegorz Braun in the performance of his duties within the meaning of Article 8 of Protocol No 7 on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union;

K.whereas Article 9, first paragraph, point (a), of Protocol No 7 on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Union provides that Members of the European Parliament enjoy, in the territory of their own State, the immunities accorded to members of their parliament;

L.whereas, in accordance with Article 105(2) and (5) of the Polish Constitution, from the day of the announcement of the results of the elections until the day of the expiry of his or her mandate, a Deputy shall not be subjected to criminal accountability without the consent of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland and he or she shall be neither detained nor arrested without the consent of the Sejm, except for cases when he or she has been apprehended in the commission of an offence and in which his or her detention is necessary for securing the proper course of proceedings;

M.whereas the purpose of parliamentary immunity is to protect Parliament and its Members from legal proceedings in relation to activities carried out in the performance of parliamentary duties and which cannot be separated from those duties;

N.whereas, in accordance with Rule 5(2) of its Rules of Procedure, parliamentary immunity is not a personal privilege of the Member but a guarantee of the independence of Parliament as a whole, and of its Members;

O.whereas, in this case, Parliament found no evidence of fumus persecutionis, which is to say factual elements indicating that the intention underlying the legal proceedings in question is to undermine the Member’s political activity in his capacity as a Member of the European Parliament;

P.whereas Parliament cannot assume the role of a court, and whereas, in a waiver of immunity procedure, a Member cannot be regarded as a defendant;

1.Decides to waive the immunity of Grzegorz Braun;

2.Instructs its President to forward this decision and the report of its committee responsible immediately to the competent authorities of the Republic of Poland and to Grzegorz Braun.