Primacy of national law over EU law

15.7.2020

Question for written answer E-004215/2020
to the Commission
Rule 138
Jean-Paul Garraud (ID), Gilles Lebreton (ID)

In a judgment of 5 May 2020, Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe ruled that, since 2015, the European Central Bank had been exceeding its powers by purchasing bonds from euro area countries. This decision marks the first time the German Constitutional Court has rejected a judgment from the European Court of Justice (ECJ).

According to a number of MEPs who attended the joint hearing of the Committees on Legal Affairs and Constitutional Affairs on 14 July 2020, the Commission, as guardian of the Treaties, should launch infringement proceedings against Germany on the ‘legal’ basis that it has violated the primacy of EU law over national law. Moreover, the judgment could set a precedent and inspire other national courts to sidestep ECJ decisions.

Does the Commission intend to bring infringement proceedings against Germany in the near future?

What is the Commission’s legal basis in establishing the principle of the primacy of EU law over national law, since it does not exist in the Treaties?