Why the Commission is treating Poland more harshly than Hungary in its rule of law review

In January, the European Commission announced an inquiry into whether recent Polish reforms affecting the country’s constitutional tribunal and media are consistent with the rule of law. Agata Gostyńska-Jakubowska writes that the Commission’s review has been noticeably different from its previous approach in relation to Hungary, where there have been similar concerns raised over reforms carried out by Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz government. She argues that the fact that the Law and Justice party has less political allies at the European level and that the Juncker’s Commission is more assertive vis-à-vis member-states than its predecessor, may go some way toward explaining why the cases have been handled differently.