Fidesz MEPs call for deep anti-corruption reform of EU institutions

In a statement sent to MTI, they called for meaningful change instead of self-monitoring institutions failing to meet the requirement of political independence, adding that this could only be achieved with the involvement of national parliaments.

Fidesz MEP Erno Schaller-Baross said EU institutions were actively resisting the creation of any kind of rule-of-law control over them, rejecting the possibility of control from member states because this would threaten their powers and objectives. The creation of a new, independent ethics body can only be supported if it is established in full respect of the EU treaties while providing adequate powers to member states, he added.

“In the absence of these conditions, the EP’s initiative is just one of the steps that serve the power interests of the Union and the political aspirations of the European left,” Schaller-Baross added.

Fidesz MEP Laszlo Trocsanyi said that a new ethics body must be capable of effective action against corruption, and for this it was essential that — in accordance with the EU founding treaties — it was truly independent organisationally, personally and in terms of its powers. Only a truly independent body established by the parliaments of member states could act effectively against corruption, Trocsanyi argued.

Following up on earlier measures, members of the European Parliament (EP) on Thursday reiterated their determination to show “zero tolerance for corruption in any shape and at any level” in a resolution adopted at a plenary session in Strasbourg. They urged better implementation of the EP’s Code of Conduct, including financial sanctions in case of breaches, and a ban on any remunerated activities that could create a conflict of interest with an MEP’s mandate.