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Rule of Law Protection through RRF Performance-based Spending Conditionality: Lessons from the Polish, Hungarian and Slovak Plans

By Pauline Thinus

ÉDITION
Cambridge University Press

COLLECTION

European Journal of Risk Regulation

Abstract

The Recovery and Resilience Facility reflects the generalisation of spending conditionality and the economisation of the rule of law in EU governance. The RRF performance-based approach also applies to measures related to rule of law protection, meaning that recovery funds can only be disbursed as long as the related conditions are met. While the academic literature has already highlighted the difficulty of applying performance frameworks to values, this article assesses how the RRF performance-based approach integrates the safeguard of the rule of law, based on a comparative study of the Slovak, Hungarian and Polish plans. Rule of law protection is set as a priority in the RRF. Yet, the economic and financial framing – in line with New Public Management and neoliberal governmentality – limits the potential impact of rule of law reforms. Overall, the effectiveness of rule-of-law spending conditionality depends more on the features of the performance regime and the attitude of political actors than the degree of financial pressure.

Mis à jour le 1 décembre 2025