Strengths and Weaknesses of the Proposal for a EU Directive on Combating Corruption

The anti-corruption package presented by the European Commission last May reaffirms the high political priority of combating corruption offences in the European Union. Concerning the proposal for a new EU directive on this matter, the existing significant disharmony and fragmentation of national legal systems calls for greater alignment at the European level, through the exercise of “non-exclusive” EU competence” in criminal matters, in order to combat serious crimes of corruption in a broader sense on a shared basis, taking into account their potential cross-border dimension as well. Nevertheless, various provisions included in the proposed directive raise serious doubts concerning the adherence to the principle of proportionality, specifically regarding what is necessary to achieve the objectives of the new EU instrument (Art. 5(4) TEU) and the unreasonable choice to largely equate responses to corruption in the public sector and in the private sector. Furthermore, concerns also arise with respect to the pr