EU Anti-corruption Policies: Methods, Results, and Challenges

Based on analyses from international examples, this chapter examines the effectiveness and efficiency of various methods for combating corruption. The empirical literature on specific anti-corruption measures supports theoretical assumptions, showing that factors such as higher wages, careful selection of bureaucrats, the decentralisation of bureaucracy, competitive organisations, robust political institutions, a free press, data transparency, digitalisation, and modern technologies all contribute to reducing corruption. However, the chapter argues that other factors should also be considered beyond the traditional approach—which focuses on reducing the financial incentives for corruption, increasing the likelihood of detection, raising the moral cost of corruption, and enhancing the moral satisfaction of abstaining from corrupt behaviour. Specifically, attention should be given to enhancing the perceived likelihood of detection and the perceived likelihood of replacement among economic and political actors. The findings indicate a significant decrease in corruption risk in public procurement from 2007 to 2023 in New Member States, linked to the EU’s anti-corruption efforts, particularly those intensified after 2010. The results also show that the corruption risk in EU-funded procurements during this period is notably higher than in nationally funded procurements. This trend is consistent across New Member States, Southern European countries, and Western European countries, where the proportion of EU-supported procurements is much lower than in the first two regions. These findings suggest that the EU should take additional steps beyond its current measures to reduce the corruption risks associated with public procurements funded by EU support further.