Poland's pro-EU coalition government has won a vote of confidence in the country’s parliament by 243 to 210 votes.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk called the vote last week following the victory of conservative historian Karol Nawrocki in the Polish presidential election, who defeated Mr Tusk’s ally, the centrist candidate Rafal Trzaskowski.
The vote in the Sejm, the Polish parliament, was seen as an attempt by Mr Tusk to display unity within the coalition government and to reinforce its mandate, with two-and-a-half years to go until the next parliamentary election in 2027.
The main opposition party, the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS), had called on the government to resign following the presidential election in an attempt to capitalise on Mr Nawrocki’s victory, the candidate backed by PiS in the race.
Mr Tusk presented his government’s record to parliament this morning, 18 months after coming to power.
He pointed to increased spending on defence and national security, higher spending on social security programmes, stricter immigration controls and improved relations with the European Union as some of the government’s main achievements.
Mr Tusk also hailed economic growth of 3.7% during the 18 months of the current government and lower inflation, now at 4.1% compared to 18% in early 2023 during the final year of the previous PiS government.
However, annual rates of inflation have fallen considerably in most European economies since dramatic highs in 2022, caused largely by supply chain disruptions and higher energy prices following the global pandemic.
The result of the recent presidential election, said Mr Tusk, "does not in any way reduce our responsibility, our duties, the scope of power and competence".
Leaders of the coalition government’s three other parties, speaking in parliament, also gave their support to Mr Tusk’s speech.
The Polish premier also said that he would announce a cabinet reshuffle in July, perhaps a signal that he wants to give his government some fresh momentum.
In a stunt emblematic of the deep polarisation in Polish politics, PiS deputies boycotted Mr Tusk’s speech.
PiS, along with the far-right Confederation party and the small far-left party, Razem (Together), voted against the government in this afternoon’s confidence motion.
Mr Tusk’s government has struggled to deliver some of the more prominent reforms it promised voters when it was elected in October 2023.
These include the liberalisation of Poland’s strict abortion laws, the introduction of civil union for same-sex couples and reforms to the judiciary to reverse the rule-of-law changes made by PiS when it was in government from 2015 to 2023.
The government's inability to push through some of its reform priorities appears to have dented its popularity.
Read more: Nationalist Karol Nawrocki wins Polish presidency
How Karol Nawrocki won the Polish presidential election
A survey by Polish pollster OGB conducted one week before the presidential election on 1 June found that only one in three people surveyed held a positive view of the current government.
Outgoing President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally, has played a role in stifling the government's reform agenda, vetoing or deferring two dozen bills over the past 18 months since the coalition government was formed, including a bill passed by parliament to overhaul the country’s constitutional court, currently stacked with conservative judges appointed by PiS.
However, differences within the coalition government over abortion legislation and same-sex union have also held back reforms.
While Mr Tusk's Civic Platform, the largest party in the coalition, and the Left, the smallest group, support the liberalisation of Poland’s strict abortion laws to allow abortion up to the 12th week of pregnancy, a socially conservative bloc within the coalition opposes full liberalisation and favours a referendum on the issue.
The vote of confidence is symbolically important for Mr Tusk as prime minister and his government, which will now try to redouble its efforts to overhaul the judiciary.
However, Mr Nawrocki, due to be sworn in as Poland's new president in August, may block or delay those efforts, just as Mr Duda has done.
