The European Parliament's CRIM special committee voted today its final report, based on its first interim resolution adopted by the European Parliament on 11 June 2013. The aim is to draw up a comprehensive action plan and to favour the development of a legislative framework to combat organised crime, corruption and money laundering at EU level, while calling for a proper enforcing of existing EU legislation. ALDE spokesperson on the dossier Theodoros Skylakakis (Drassi, Greece) said: "The EU and its Member States must strengthen their actions against organised crime, corruption and money laundering by setting up clear and targeted strategies at national, EU and international level. As suggested in the Thematic Paper I have produced for the CRIM committee, it is paramount to ensure that action is taken to fight against corruption in the public administration of the Member States; for our economic union to function effectively we need an anti-corruption union". Globalisation, EU Member States' different laws, sophisticated technologies are just some of the means exploited by organised crime, corruption and money laundering to penetrate our economies and social fabric. Their impact might not always be precisely quantifiable but it is certainly tangible. The cost to the global economy amounts to billions of euros every year and they claim thousands of victims. ALDE coordinator in CRIM Bill Newton Dunn (LibDems, UK) said: "Member States remain the key players in ensuring the implementation and the effectiveness of an EU strategy against organised crime, corruption and money laundering. However, we regularly witness the total failure of EU countries to work effectively across borders with each other. Unfortunately organised crime is extremely good at it. We need to take seriously into consideration the development of new EU instruments and bodies to tackle more efficaciously these phenomena". The report calls on Member States, among others, to strengthen their agreements on judicial and police cooperation and with third countries and to develop specific strategies to ensure that their intelligence services, police, investigative authorities, together with Europol, facilitate information exchange. CRIM Chairperson, ALDE Member, Sonia Alfano (Italy) said: "Ensuring due protection to witnesses and informers is a first step to attack the culture behind these phenomena". The report calls on the Commission to submit by the end of 2013 a legislative proposal establishing an effective and comprehensive European whistleblowers protection programme in the public and in the private sector. Another priority in the fight against organised crime was adopted. Namely, the report calls on the Commission to define at the EU level, the offence of involvement in a mafia-type organisation. "The implementation of this report should be one of the main priorities of the new European Parliament and Commission. Fighting these phenomena means ensuring freedom, security and democracy to our citizens", she concluded. The report also recommends Member States to provide, in their respective penal systems, a provision on ineligibility for election for those who are convicted of organised crime, money laundering and corruption.

• published: 18 Sep 2013
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