The head of the Ministry of Justice, Attorney General Adam Bodnar, announced that he signed a formal request to the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, seeking the waiver of immunity for Grzegorz Braun, a member of the Confederation party. Immunity had been revoked by the Polish Sejm in January, but Braun subsequently won a seat in the European Parliament, placing the issue in the hands of EU lawmakers who must weigh such permissions for sitting MEPs. The move signals a careful approach by Poland to ensure that immunity rules are applied consistently across national and European institutions and that any action is backed by proper procedure rather than by a unilateral decision.
In a recent statement Bodnar explained that even though the Sejm had already stripped Braun of immunity, his status as a member of the European Parliament required explicit authorization from Brussels before immunity could be removed at the EU level. He stressed that the new information comes while the case remains the same at its core, and the extra step is meant to guard against any procedural doubts that might arise after the fact.
He recalled that immunity had already been revoked by the Sejm, yet Braun’s election to the European Parliament created a cross-border question about whether the European Parliament must grant its own consent before any immunity is lifted. The objective was to ensure there was no ambiguity about the proper channel and to uphold the rule of law when a national decision intersects with EU parliamentary rules.
In this context, the government decided to file the request with the European Parliament to verify the process and to prevent potential objections later on. The goal was to establish a clear, documented trail so both Polish authorities and EU bodies could act with confidence that every necessary permission was obtained before any immunity was removed.
Those involved emphasized that taking this step minimizes the risk of procedural challenges and reinforces cooperation between national and European institutions. It also reflects the seriousness with which officials treat the immunity safeguard when a lawmaker switches from national to European duties, and it underlines the need for consistent practice across jurisdictions.
Charges against Braun
The Sejm decided to revoke Braun’s immunity in January this year, and in April, during an investigation at the Warsaw Public Prosecutor’s Office, Braun was accused of several offences, including insulting a group of people on religious grounds within Sejm premises. The case includes an incident in December 2023 in which Hanukkah candles were extinguished with a fire extinguisher and Braun’s involvement in at least one related confrontation. He was also charged in connection with the incident at the German Historical Institute, where he is alleged to have blocked a Holocaust lecture, and with an event in a Krakow courtroom where he removed a Christmas tree placed there by judges and discarded it.
Additional accusations allege that Braun violated the physical integrity of the former health minister Łukasz Szumowski during the performance of official duties, used force to compel him to act, and spread defamatory claims through mass media that Szumowski was under the influence of alcohol, potentially harming his public image.
Braun pleaded not guilty to the charges and declined to provide explanations.