Norway is considered a country with little corruption. All because the authorities have a lot of trust among the population. Like most Western countries, we continue to face challenges related to corruption. This is one of the main conclusions of the new GRECO report, the Council's monitoring body Europe on national implementation of anti-corruption measures.
GRECO (Group of States against Corruption) has recently prepared the fifth one assessment report for Norway. The topic of the assessment this time was prevention corruption in politics at the level of central government and the police. A similar assessment is carried out in all 50 member countries.
A country with little corruption
Overall, the report concludes that Norway is considered a country with little corruption and a well-functioning democracy. Norway is also highly praised for implementing all the recommendations made by GRECO after the previous evaluation round.
However, GRECO points out that a system that relies so much on trust assumes a greater degree of openness in matters that may give rise to conflicts of interest. To achieve this, there is scope to strengthen both regulations and training in this area. Norway received a total of 14 recommendations to be better prepared to prevent corruption.
Recommendations for political leadership and police
Recommendations regarding political leadership include raising awareness and better monitoring compliance with regulations regarding conflicts of interest, additional purchases, gifts and contacts with third parties. Furthermore, it is recommended that secretaries of state and political advisers have the same obligation to record financial positions and activities as ministers.
In the case of the police, it is noted that important steps have been taken in recent years in for strengthening internal controls and other activities promoting integrity. However, here too, GRECO believes that more can be done, for example in raising awareness of ethical principles. It is also recommended that a better overview of secondary recruitment and disciplinary responses be developed. Within 18 months, Norway will report on what we have done to implement the measures.
What is GRECO?
Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) - The Group of States against Corruption was established in 1999 by Council of Europe. Checks for action Member States are consistent with the Council's anti-corruption standards. GRECO also operates an online platform for finding good practices in preventing and detecting corruption.
GRECO's goal is to improve members' ability to fight corruption by monitoring compliance with their regulations regulations with the anti-corruption standards set by the Council of Europe, thanks to a dynamic process of mutual assessment and mutual pressure. This serves to detect deficiencies in national legislation and prompts appropriate legal and institutional changes. Membership in GRECO is not limited only to member states of the Council of Europe. Currently, GRECO covers 50 member states (48 European countries, Kazakhstan and United States America).
