2023 Rule of Law ReportLuxembourg advised to fully implement reform on access to legal aid: European Commission

The annual report monitors the situation around the rule of law in the European Union, proposes recommendations, and evaluates whether past suggestions have been implemented. Overall, the European Commission notes that member states partially or fully implemented about 65% of last year's recommendations over the course of the past twelve months.

As for the Grand Duchy, the Commission recommends that a pending reform designed to improve people's access to legal aid be fully implemented. It further suggests that the so-called transparency register, which is based on a draft law that MP Sven Clement from the Pirate Party filed at the end of 2019 to document lawmakers' meetings with lobbyists, be evaluated in terms of efficacy and compliance to EU standards.

Here is the full set of recommendations for Luxembourg as proposed by the European Commission:

• Continue with the process to adopt the reform on making legal aid more accessible.
• Evaluate the implementation of the new legislation on lobbying the Parliament and the functioning of the transparency register and ensure that it meets the necessary transparency requirements set out in the Parliament’s rules of procedures.
• Ensure the implementation of measures adopted in relation to the time of processing of requests for disclosure of official documents, taking into account European standards on access to official documents.
• Improve the legislative decision-making process by providing wider possibilities for stakeholders to participate in public consultations.