(Bloomberg) -- Tension is rising inside Poland’s ruling coalition ahead of a cabinet reshuffle and amid negotiations over a new policy pact between the ruling Law & Justice party and its two small partners.
Fresh from wins in last year’s general election and this year’s presidential ballot, Law & Justice’s grip on power remains strong despite the dispute and escalating rhetoric.
The row came to a head on Thursday when some lawmakers from the satellite parties didn’t back legislation to give immunity to public officials who broke the law while “acting in the public interest” to fight Covid-19, as well as another bill that would ban fur farms in Poland.
The situation inside the coalition is tense and a minority cabinet or a snap election can’t be ruled out if the parties don’t agree on a pact, government spokesman Piotr Muller told Polsat News on Friday.
Law & Justice’s Chairman Jaroslaw Kaczynski and the coalition partners have for weeks been negotiating a new cabinet line-up, which he said would keep the government focused and help win an unprecedented third consecutive general election, which is slated for 2023.
For weeks, local newspapers reported about a power struggle inside the coalition and how the revamp could tip the scales in an apparent battle for influence between Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and Justice Minister Zbigniew Ziobro.
Adam Bielan, a senior coalition lawmaker, said he expected a new cooperation and policy agreement to be signed by the three parties next month after the differences are ironed out.
“There is a dispute, but once in a while every broad coalition must have a discussion,” Bielan told state broadcaster TVP Info on Friday. “I’m certain that the United Right will not fall apart. This would be absurd and incomprehensible for voters.”
The zloty traded 0.1% stronger against the euro on Friday morning, ignoring the political noise.
©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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