Anti-corruption: Stronger rules in the EU and worldwide

The European Commission is proposing a series of new measures to combat corruption in the EU, but also worldwide.

With a new directive, the EU wants to harmonize the definition of criminal offenses such as influence peddling and abuse of office.

And it would require member states to impose more criminal sanctions in corruption cases.

“The package will raise the bar in terms of EU-wide definitions and penalties for corruption offences and help authorities catch and punish criminals, whether they come from the public or private sector, wherever they occur”, Vera Jourova, Vice President of the European Commission, said.

“The differences between national definitions of corruption and the associated penalties are too great. This also complicates cross-border investigations and creates loopholes that criminals exploit. ”

One element of the proposal is to combat corruption outside Europe. The package would enable the EU to introduce entry bans and asset freezes for individuals and entities from third countries if they have committed serious corruption offenses.

Last December, former assistants to EU parliamentarians and NGOs were arrested in the biggest corruption scandal in EU history. Anti-corruption NGO Transparency International warned that the EU must first put its own house in order before targeting foreign corruption suspects.

“The European Union has serious problems with corruption, we have seen that with Qatargate and many other examples. And also certain member states have very serious problems”, Roland Papp, Senior Policy Officer at Transparency International, said.

“So, of course it’s very important that we can’t do anything abroad when EU citizens go unpunished at home. So it’s very important that the EU intensifies its work on this domestically.”

The Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament are calling for strengthened legal framework and investigative tools, greater cooperation between competent authorities and an increased role for the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO). 

“If the Commission is serious about the fight against corruption, they should also make far greater use of the rule of law mechanism and better equip the European Public Prosecutor’s Office. The Commission must stop dragging its feet and bring about an independent EU Ethics Body to ensure that the EU institutions get their own houses in order”, Daniel Freund, member of the Civil Liberties Committee and Constitutional Affairs Committee, said.

According to the Commission, corruption costs the EU economy around 120 billion euros every year and undermines confidence in democracy.

The proposed Directive on combating corruption will have to be negotiated and adopted by the European Parliament and the Council before it can become EU law.