MEPs have set out the European Parliament’s priorities for the European Commission’s upcoming first EU anti-corruption strategy, calling for tougher safeguards on conflicts of interest, political finance and “revolving doors” — when officials move between public office and private sector roles.
The resolution, adopted on Thursday by a show of hands, said the strategy should respond to corruption risks linked to organised crime and new technologies, following the entry into force of an EU anti-corruption directive in May 2026, the Parliament informed.
MEPs called for evidence-based “corruption risk mapping”, staff training and stronger rules covering public procurement and grants, as well as more harmonised standards on conflicts of interest, gifts, sponsored travel and asset declarations.
They also urged clearer lobbying rules and common EU-wide rules on political financing, including transparency around political foundations and intermediaries.
Cross-border enforcement and protection for watchdogs
The Parliament called for closer cooperation and data-sharing between national authorities and EU bodies including Europol, Eurojust, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF).
MEPs said national anti-corruption bodies should be independent and properly resourced, and called for the EPPO to receive more resources for serious cross-border corruption cases, while urging member states that have not joined the office to do so.
The resolution also called for stronger action to trace, freeze, confiscate and recover criminal proceeds, and flagged risks linked to crypto-assets, opaque ownership structures and digital tools.
MEPs also called for stronger protection for whistleblowers and investigative journalists, and for the EU to become a full member of the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO), so EU institutions face the same scrutiny as national authorities.
On monitoring, the Parliament backed common indicators to assess anti-corruption policies and more specific, measurable recommendations in the Commission’s annual rule of law reports, as well as stronger “rule of law conditionality” — linking some EU funding to respect for rule of law standards — in the next long-term EU budget.
A 2025 Special Eurobarometer found 69% of Europeans believe corruption is widespread in their country, while almost 60% of criminal networks engage in corruption in one way or another.
