European Commissioner Elżbieta Bieńkowska said Poland has “abdicated” its role as leader of Europe’s eastern bloc as it fails to compromise on controversial domestic and judicial reforms.

Europe is facing a crisis over the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party’s plans to change how judges are hired and fired, that critics warn will give ministers too much political sway over the courts.

Brussels say it contravenes European law and has even threatened to suspend Poland’s voting rights.

As tensions threaten to boil over, eurocrats threatened to trigger Article 7 and temporarily boot the country off the European Council. The punishment would be unprecedented as it is the first time the measure has ever been used.