Grzegorz Braun without immunity: What did the process in the EP look like?

In brief

On September 7, 2026, the EP Committee on Legal Affairs unanimously supported the motion to waive immunity in a secret ballot.
The decision-making process lasted from March 2026, with key stages on March 24, April 28, and July 13.
The lifting of immunity protection allows the prosecutor's office to take direct procedural steps against the MEP.

Chronology: From motion to decision

The case regarding Grzegorz Braun's immunity has finally concluded. Today, September 7, 2026, the European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs reached a unanimous decision in a secret ballot, which definitively strips the MEP of protection against law enforcement agencies. The procedure, which has been ongoing for the last few months, was full of ambiguity and conflicting signals, which only fueled the discussion surrounding the politician's activities in Brussels. For a long time, the public received contradictory messages, which forces us to take a closer look at what this decision-making path in EU structures actually looked like.

Below we present the key stages that led to today's resolution:

March 24, 2026: First decision by the EU committee.
March 26, 2026: European Parliament makes a decision.
April 28, 2026: Further confirmation of the EP decision.
July 13, 2026: wPolityce reports on the lack of immunity.
September 7, 2026: Unanimous decision by the Committee on Legal Affairs.

The dissonance between media reports and the actual legal status was striking. For nearly half a year, media outlets, including Onet, PolsatNews, and wPolityce, repeatedly reported that protection had been revoked, while the formal process was still underway within the committee. Today's unanimous vote definitively puts an end to all speculation. This is the most important moment for law enforcement agencies, which can now fully process motions against the MEP without regard for parliamentary privileges.

However, the question remains as to why the processing of the motion took so long. Was it a matter of the European Parliament's complicated internal procedures, or rather political timing aimed at avoiding accusations of haste in politically motivated cases? One thing is certain. Today's decision by the Committee on Legal Affairs is no longer a media announcement, but a fact that exhausts the path to immunity protection for Grzegorz Braun. From this moment on, the politician is treated on an equal footing with any other citizen in the eyes of the justice system.

Behind the scenes of the secret ballot in the Committee on Legal Affairs

The decision regarding Grzegorz Braun was made in a way that leaves no room for interpreting political alliances within the European Parliament. The process, which dragged on for months, ended on September 7, 2026, with the definitive removal of immunity. The MEPs sitting on the Committee on Legal Affairs reached this resolution in a classified mode. This is a key detail. The secrecy of the procedure was intended to protect committee members from direct party pressure and outside influence, but the final result is a clear message.

The vote was unanimous. There was no split, no abstentions, and no dissenting opinions that might suggest any hesitation among the MEPs. This unanimity is striking, given the hitherto often turbulent discussion over Braun's immunity, which had been taking place in the media and the corridors of the European Parliament since March 2026.

In practice, this means that the arguments raised by the MEP's defense did not gain any recognition in the eyes of the committee. Decision-makers in Brussels distanced themselves from political rhetoric. They opted for a procedure that was intended to be airtight and indisputable. The lack of opposition in the committee shows that the case was not treated as a political game, but as a procedural issue requiring a quick and unambiguous resolution. Now that immunity has ceased to exist, the path for law enforcement action is open. Will this actually close the case that has been discussed since May, when the first announcements about facing consequences were made? The committee's unanimity suggests that no one in parliament wanted to take responsibility for blocking this process. Braun has been left politically isolated at the most critical moment.

Scope of prosecutorial accusations

The European Parliament's decision did not happen in a vacuum. The lifting of Grzegorz Braun's immunity is a direct result of a motion by the prosecutor's office, which has been seeking to indict the politician for months. This motion is not just a formal gesture, but a concrete attempt to open the way to a court trial. Prosecutors argue that the actions taken by the MEP require urgent verification by an independent court because they go beyond the scope of protection afforded by his mandate.

The essence of the accusations is the specific context of the actions which, according to investigators, violated applicable regulations. Although the full content of the motion remains classified, it is widely indicated that law enforcement is interested in incidents in which the MP took an active part. The prosecutor's office concluded that immunity in this case would constitute an unjustified shield, blocking the course of justice in criminal matters. This is a signal that EU institutions have stopped treating legal protection as an absolute privilege that allows one to avoid responsibility for acts that go beyond standard parliamentary activity.

From a political perspective, this is a risky move. From the beginning, Braun maintained that all accusations were politically motivated, which fits into his existing rhetoric. Now, however, a defense line based on "persecution" will be much harder to maintain in court, where evidence counts, not media messaging. Judges, unlike politicians, will not look at polls or party sympathies, which puts the MEP in a completely new position. Will the prosecutor's office manage to turn these accusations into a conviction? We will only know the answer to this question in the coming months, when the case goes to trial. One thing is certain – the era of impunity in this specific case has come to an end.

Political reactions and announcements of legal steps

The MEPs' decision to lift Grzegorz Braun's immunity crowns a months-long legal battle that has sparked emotions in the Polish public debate from the start. Today's confirmation of the unanimous, secret vote definitively closes the protective period that the politician enjoyed as a member of the European Parliament. This is a political reality, not just a declaration, which opens the way for law enforcement agencies to take direct action.

The corridors of Brussels and Warsaw have been buzzing for a long time. Tracking the process of removing protection from the justice system was like a slow tightening of a noose, which is well illustrated by the chronology of events:

March 24, 2026: The EP committee takes the first formal steps regarding Braun's immunity.
March 26, 2026: Media report on the official decision of the European Parliament.
April 28, 2026: Another meeting of EU bodies confirms the MEPs' determination on this issue.
May 8, 2026: Żurek publicly announces that severe consequences will be drawn against Braun.
July 13, 2026: Further media reports convince the public that the procedure is irreversible.

Żurek's words about "an end to disregard" have become an informal political slogan in recent months for the camp seeking to punish the MEP. For supporters of this move, it is a signal that the law cannot yield to immunity when serious charges are involved. From the Brussels perspective, however, there is a clear distance. By voting in a secret session, the MEPs showed that for them, this case is no longer just a political brawl, but a matter of procedures and the image of the institution itself. Braun, left without a protective shield, now loses his strongest argument in the dispute with the justice system. Whether this is the actual end of his political impunity or just the beginning of a new defense strategy will become clear during the upcoming hearings.

Procedure after the lifting of immunity

September 7, 2026, puts a period at the end of a months-long legal battle. The unanimous decision of the MEPs, taken in a secret ballot, is irrevocable. As of today, Grzegorz Braun loses his protection from the court. This is the end of the months-long umbrella that until now allowed the politician to avoid direct confrontation with the justice system in cases where he was previously protected by EU regulations.

For Polish law enforcement agencies, this is a signal for immediate action. The path is now open to indict the politician, conduct interrogations, or potentially bring him before a prosecutor by force. The existing procedure, which had been dragging on since March, when this issue first became a subject of debate in the EU committee, has finally exhausted its formal possibilities. Investigators no longer have to file motions for permission to prosecute, which will significantly speed up the pace of proceedings in which Braun is a suspect.

The question of how quickly the prosecutor's office will use this "green light" remains open. Some lawyers point out that after years of disputes over the scope of immunity, each subsequent procedural step will be analyzed for potential procedural errors that could be used by the defense to undermine the indictment. The effectiveness of this step now depends solely on the efficiency of the Polish prosecutor's office.

The fact that immunity has been lost changes the balance of power. Braun is no longer protected by the EU shield, which means that his procedural situation is now equal to that of any other citizen. For the prosecutor's office, this is a test of effectiveness, and for the politician – a difficult moment in which the rhetoric about political persecution will lose its strongest, formal argument in the form of European parliamentary protection. Now, only the paragraphs and the collected evidence matter.

What next for Grzegorz Braun's mandate?

The decision of September 7, 2026, definitively closes the stage of parliamentary protection. After months of speculation and procedures that had been dragging on since March, the matter has been resolved. MEPs, in a secret and unanimous vote, stripped Grzegorz Braun of his immunity. This is not a matter of political interpretation, but a legal fact that opens the way to actions from which the politician was previously protected.

The loss of immunity in the European Parliament does not mean the automatic expiration of the mandate, but it drastically changes Braun's negotiating position. Representatives of the justice system, including Judge Żurek, have been openly talking about the end of the era of disregarding procedures since May, which is now gaining a firm footing. For the person concerned, this primarily means the necessity of facing charges without a parliamentary shield. Braun's political future in Brussels now becomes secondary to problems of a procedural nature.

The Brussels machine, which began analyses in committees in March and April, has finally reached a consensus. The speed with which this case was finally closed is striking, considering the previous months of silence and uncertainty. In practice, this means that law enforcement agencies gain a green light for actions that were previously blocked by the European protective umbrella. Is this the beginning of the end of his political career, or just a new, more conflict-ridden stage? The answer to this question no longer lies in the hands of MEPs, but with prosecutors and courts, which have a free hand after September 7. Braun is no longer protected, and the political consequences of this state of affairs will be felt mainly in Polish courtrooms, not in the corridors of the European Parliament.

What this means for you

The lifting of immunity means that, in the eyes of the law, Grzegorz Braun becomes a person who can be held criminally liable by the Polish prosecutor's office, which ends the period of his protection from law enforcement agencies.

Questions and answers

Is the decision of the Committee on Legal Affairs final?

Yes, after the unanimous vote on September 7, 2026, the procedure for lifting immunity has been completed.

Why was the vote secret?

Votes on immunity matters in the European Parliament are standardly held in a secret session to ensure the independence of the MEPs' decisions.

What does Grzegorz Braun face after losing his immunity?

The loss of immunity allows the prosecutor's office to bring charges against him, conduct interrogations, and potentially file an indictment in court.

Sources

Article prepared by the Wiadomości PRO editorial team with the support of artificial intelligence. Facts are derived from the sources provided above.