Polish ruling party loses majority amid rift over controversial media bill

Mateusz Morawiecki is pushing ahead with a Bill to control the media (Olivier Matthys/AP)

Poland’s ruling right-wing party has lost its parliamentary majority after a small coalition partner announced that it was leaving the government amid a rift over legislation it views as an attack on media freedom.

The media bill, which is scheduled for an afternoon vote on Wdnesday, would prevent non-European owners from having controlling stakes in Polish media companies. It is viewed as a crucial test for the survival of independent media in the former communist nation, coming six years into the rule of a populist government that has chipped away at media and judicial independence.