Dublin MEP spearheads anti-corruption drive (26/2/09)
February 26, 2009 at 5:01 pm Leave a comment
An EU-wide petition calling for legislation to combat corruption has been launched in Brussels by a cross-party group of MEPs this week.
Dublin MEP Eoin Ryan and some of his parliamentary colleagues have set up a website, www.stopcorruption.eu, outlining a range of measures that they believe are necessary to curb corruption, defined by the UN as ‘the abuse of power for private gain’.
The campaign is seeking a million signatures to mount pressure on the EU and member states to instigate reforms, particularly in Europe’s relations with developing countries, where high level corruption by government officials robs taxpayers of billions of dollars every year. In Africa, for example, about 25 per cent of overall GDP is lost each year to corrupt practices, from petty bribes to inflated public procurement contracts.
Among other demands, the petition calls on the EU to coordinate its efforts to halt tax evasion, and the illicit financial operations made possible through the use of ‘offshore havens’. It also encourages Europe, America and other countries to exchange details of officials charged with corruption, so that their assets in European bank accounts can be frozen, and they can be banned from buying property in the EU. The campaign is supported by NGOs Global Witness and Transparency International.
Entry filed under: Crime and the EU, EU Petitions. Tags: .
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