Within the framework of the European Commission's Falcone programme, a study of the organisation of the fight against corruption in the Member States and candidate countries of the European Union was established by Ghent University. The results of the study can be found in this book, which provides a comparative analysis of anti-corruption arrangements across 24 European States. In addition to this it includes the full texts as provided by the experts selected to contribute both to the volume itself and the accompanying two-day meeting in Ghent, Belgium. The collection and publication of these reports supports one of the two central aims of the project: to assist in furthering mutual knowledge and understanding of the legal frameworks and organisations that are tasked with the fight against corruption across the European Union and candidate countries. This collection also reflects the second central aim of the project which was to assist in the formation of a wide network of people involved in anti-corruption efforts. For this reason the provided texts have come from a broad spectrum of interested agencies and individuals. Subsequently, they provide a broader picture of corruption in the 24 countries than might otherwise be expected. Accordingly, this four part volume begins with a brief introduction in which the aims, context, methodology and questionnaire are covered. Part two provides a comparative analysis of the reports, bolstered by the findings of the meeting. Part three contains the collected reports and can be used by practitioners and others interested in the anti-corruption arrangements of the various European Union Member States and candidate countries. The fourth and final part of this volume is a concluding statement in which the recommendations of the final meeting are suggested for consideration.

Analyses anti-corruption policy within EU Member States and the evolution of anti-corruption policy during the accession process.

This book analyses the development of anti-corruption as a policy field in the European Union with a particular focus on the EU Anti-Corruption Report. It reconstructs the origins of anti-corruption policy in the 1990s when the EU started to recognise corruption as a serious crime with a cross-border dimension. It also analyses the processes surrounding the downfall of the Santer Commission on charges of corruption in 1999 and the enlargement of the EU. This incorporation of transitional new Member States was accompanied by a number of specific measures, instruments and monitoring mechanisms to combat corruption at the supranational level, finally leading to the introduction of the EU-wide Anti-Corruption Report in 2014. The book presents an in-depth analysis of its implementation, abandonment and the way forward under the European Semester as the new instrument for achieving EU anti-corruption reforms. It offers a new interpretation of the Report as a form of reflexive governance that operates at multiple levels and involves not only the European institutions and national governments, but also the role of civil society actors in the process of developing anti-corruption policy. It applies the theory of reflexive governance in analysing the impact of the Report in the UK, Romania and Albania, including the involvement of non-state actors in anti-corruption policy making in these countries. The book concludes with a discussion on how future EU Anti-Corruption policy can make use of reflexive governance and offers recommendations to enhance anti-corruption policies of the EU, the Member States and Candidate States.

Fraud is an issue which generates headlines and exercises politicians and public alike. There is a perception that the European Union and its budget arrangements constitute a fraudsters paradise which the EU has done very little about. In this book, Brendan Quirke and Alan Doig provide an analytical, evidenced and considered study of this controversial issue.

In Corruption and Organised Crime in Europe, Gounev and Ruggiero present a discussion of the relation between organized criminals and corruption in the EU’s 27 Member States. The book draws on research and scholarly work the editors carried out, respectively, within the Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD) in Bulgaria, and within academic institutions, as well as on behalf of the European Commission and the United Nations. Combining empirical data and theoretical debates, the book focuses on three main areas of the relationship between corruption and organised crime: public bodies, the private sector and criminal markets. It presents the findings of a recent research project carried out by the CSD on behalf of the European Commission, providing an analysis of the specific national contexts in which corruption and organized crime thrive. The essays also address institutional responses and policies, focusing particularly on how EU Member States attempt to sever the links between the official economy, the political sphere and organized crime. The second part of the book presents case studies, written by some of the foremost international experts on the subject matter, analysing corrupt exchange and criminal organisations, concentrating on specific European countries – Bulgaria, France, Greece, Italy, Russia, Spain and the UK. As the first comprehensive study of corruption and organised crime in the countries of the European Union, the book will be a valuable resource for students and scholars of criminology, sociology, law and international politics, as well policy makers and law-enforcement agencies.

This volume represents the first attempt to systematically compare organised crime concepts, as well as historical and contemporary patterns and control policies in thirteen European countries. These include seven ‘old’ EU Member States, two ‘new’ members, a candidate country, and three non-EU countries. Based on a standardised research protocol, thirty-three experts from different legal and social disciplines provide insight through detailed country reports. On this basis, the editors compare organised crime patterns and policies in Europe and assess EU initiatives against organised crime.

This collection of papers provides the key elements needed to build and preserve corruption-free institutions, systems, and private enterprises.