Debate: Establishment of the EU Ethics Body
Date: TUESDAY, 13 JUNE 2023
Speaker: Věra Jourová
Language: EN

We all know that democracy can only flourish in a climate of trust and confidence between the citizens and the institutions who serve them. This is essential to maintain public confidence in the European Union and to preserve the impartiality of the decision-making process in each institution.  This calls for a joint effort to develop a common culture of integrity and transparency across the institutions. Citizens will not differentiate between EU institutions and bodies if a breach of trust happens. And that is why President von der Leyen committed in her political guidelines to support the creation of an ethics body common to all EU institutions and to work closely with the other institutions to achieve this.  As you know, the Commission has adopted last week a proposal for the establishment of this interinstitutional ethics body. It is an ambitious proposal which is a novelty in the interinstitutional structure. Our proposal has four important features that I would like to emphasise here. Firstly, it is the first time that a joint ethics body would set up would be set up to establish common ethical standards for the members of all nine institutions and two advisory bodies of the European Union, as per Article 13 of the Treaty. I want to emphasise that the proposed body will be something unprecedented. It will fill a gap. So far there has never been a mechanism for cooperation, coordination or exchange of views between institutions on ethical questions in relation to what is expected of their members. Secondly, the body will be a permanent structure for standardising what is expected of persons holding the highest political or institutional functions in the EU. It would foster a common understanding of the respective obligations of members. Thirdly, the body will respect the independence and autonomy of each institution, and it will not interfere with the institutional balance established by the Treaties. And last, the fourth point: it will focus on tasks with a real added value. It will not replace or duplicate well-established, existing and functioning structures. There are calls about giving the body strong investigative powers, but we already have bodies that have such powers. The proposed body will not interfere with the mandate of investigative bodies like the European Anti-Fraud Office, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, the national judicial and prosecution authorities or the European Ombudsman. In this context, I heard voices, notably from this House, which call for a powerful and autonomous investigative body, but an ethics body with enforcement powers over the members of the institutions would not respect the principles of institutional autonomy and institutional balance. Such powers are reserved to the investigative bodies that we already have and to independent courts. The OLAF can already investigate fraud and breaches of professional duties by members of the institutions. Our focus should thus be directed on supporting OLAF or to facilitate its work. The Director-General of OLAF sent very clear messages in this regard in his speech last week. Regarding the mission of the ethics body to develop standards. I would like to highlight very briefly three points. Firstly, the standards would relate to areas which are crucial for the independence and integrity of the members of all institutions. Standards on members’ conduct will be complemented by a standard for concrete implementation, monitoring and enforcement mechanisms in each institution. In this context, a specific standard for checking the compliance and ensuring follow-up in case of breaches will be developed. For instance, the standard could detail how a breach of internal rules by members of the institutions may be reported to OLAF. The body will also develop the standard for transparency of information gathered in the areas covered by other standards. It will concern, for example, the disclosure of individual interests and assets through specific declarations in order to avoid doubts on the independence of members of the institutions. Secondly, all these standards should be common and address the ethical risk that all institutions face. They cannot, under any circumstance, constitute grounds for lowering standards that may already be applied by the institutions on the same matter. And I would like to stress that neither the ethics body nor the standards will prevent any institution to act when necessary and to go beyond the adopted standards. No one needs to wait for the body to do what’s requested immediately. Thirdly, as regards their implementation, the institutions will be bound to incorporate the content of the standards into their own internal rules for their members and will remain responsible for their day to day application when dealing with individual cases. Concerning its composition, the Commission proposes that the body will be composed of one member, for example, at the level of Vice-President or similar from each participating institution. It is essential to have high-level representatives of the institutions who are familiar with the workings of their own institution. Also to ensure the implementation of the work of the body by the institution they represent. In addition, the body will be supported by five independent experts who will be selected in consideration of their experience, independence and professional qualities. Their reasoned opinions will bring useful additional views and balance to the body’s deliberations from persons who are not part of any institution. Honourable Members, I have to underline in conclusion that the interinstitutional ethics body would be an institutional novelty and a major step forward for creating a joint culture of ethics; a meaningful and needed step. It would demonstrate the importance that all institutions attach to a high ethical standard for their members. The crucial part of the common work starts now. We will explain our proposal to all institutions concerned and convince them that the Commission’s proposal is the most suitable option for protecting ethics and integrity at EU level. We are determined to achieve that all institutions will join the negotiations and adhere to this interinstitutional ethics body. We will recall at every occasion that the Commission’s proposal is legally sound, politically feasible and meaningful to deliver the level of integrity that the European citizens expect. I want to meet representatives of the institutions, including this House, early in July, to hear their views on the proposal, and I look forward to the first meeting of the negotiations.