Corruption in politics, the Council of Europe rebukes Italy

The legal framework for the fight against corruption is substantial, but it is so complex that it has a negative impact on effective enforcement. There are still gaps in the prevention of corruption of persons in senior executive functions, in particular in the regulation of conflict of interest and transparency in the submission of financial statements by persons in executive functions. This was written by the Council of Europe's Group of States against Corruption (Greco), which published yesterday its monitoring report on Italy, the conclusion of the fifth evaluation cycle dedicated to "preventing corruption and promoting the integrity of central governments and, in particular, of those in high-level executive functions in government and law enforcement".
The report deals with a specific area from a subjective point of view, because it is limited to considering the situation of persons holding particular offices and is based on the analysis, carried out from 2017, which ended with the visit to Italy in May 2023. The report, which was adopted in March 2024 and made public yesterday, does not contain any substantive assessments on the elimination of the crime of abuse of office, which was still under discussion at the time of the panel's work.

Italy has 18 months to send Greco a report on the actions put in place to fulfil the 19 recommendations that are part of the final document, with a new report due in 2026.
Greco highlighted the need for action to ensure that all those who perform top executive functions are subject to integrity checks to prevent and manage potential conflicts of interest, and noted that consultants to ministries should also be subject to rules on conflicts of interest and financial disclosure.
Moreover, Greco did not seem convinced that the public sector code of conduct, applicable to employees and managers, should not also be extended to political office holders, collaborators and consultants, 'irrespective of employment relationship and role'.
A regulatory intervention, in the name of transparency, is required to regulate the relations between government members and lobbyists, with specific indication of contacts, as well as stricter rules and supervision on gifts, benefits and invitations.
Italy should also strengthen the post-appointment regime, expanding it "in its scope to make it applicable to all persons with senior management functions". A systemic analysis of corruption risks should be carried out at regular intervals, with the introduction of the necessary corrective measures. The Council of Europe's 'list' should also include effective sanctions for all violations, something that is currently missing.
The Greco expressed concern about the low representation of women in the police, the Carabinieri and the Guardia di finanza at management level and recommended measures to promote a more balanced representation. Finally, measures to protect whistleblowers should be increased.