Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki has vetoed legislation passed by Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government that sought to implement the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA).
Poland could face EU fines for failing to do so but Tusk has claimed that the government will be able to by-pass the need to legislate.
The vetoed legislation would have empowered regulators to block online content of individuals and entities suspected of being linked to 27 prohibited offences. They included criminal threats, incitement to suicide, paedophilia, promotion of totalitarian ideologies and incitement to hatred based on national, ethnic, racial or religious differences.
Under provisions of the vetoed bill, NGOs were to be employed to monitor online activity in order to identify material that could then be submitted for blocking either by the Office for Electronic Communications or, in the case of video platforms, the National Broadcasting Council.
The opposition Conservatives (PiS)-aligned President Nawrocki called the legislation “Orwellian” and an example of administrative censorship because it gave government officials the right to remove online content without a court order. He called on the government to work out a version of the legislation that would be acceptable to the head of state.
Nawrocki said on January 9 that the declared legislative goal of protecting citizens, especially children, was justified but that the legislation contained unacceptable provisions.
“Good solutions have been supplemented with others that are indefensible and simply do damage,” he said in a video statement posted on social media.
He objected in particular to a provision allowing appeals against officials’ decisions to be filed within 14 days, rather than providing what he called “real judicial oversight”.
Nawrocki said the measure would have forced ordinary citizens to “fight with officials” to defend their right to express opinions.
“As President, I cannot sign a bill that in practice amounts to administrative censorship,” he said.
Deputy Prime Minister and Digital Affairs Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski slammed the veto, calling it “a block to online security”.
“This is a blow against Poland and Polish people,” Gawkowski wrote on X.
“By vetoing the Digital Services Act, the president has exposed Polish children to online predators. This veto is not defending freedom of speech, it is a safety clause for paedophiles and fraudsters who can operate on the Polish internet with impunity,” declared the minister.
Poland faces potential punishment from the EU for not implementing the DSA since in May 2025, the European Commission took Poland and four other member states to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for failing to effectively implement the EU directive.
Tusk, though, has said his government would not be negotiating any legislation with the President and that it would find a way to introduce the provisions included in the vetoed legislation by administrative means because “the government must govern.”
