The Council of Europe Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) today (August 8) published a report on Romania assessing progress made in implementing the recommendations issued to the country in the Fourth Round Evaluation Report in 2015 on the prevention of corruption in respect of members of parliament, judges and prosecutors and under the ad hoc Rule 34 Procedure introduced in 2018 addressing concerns brought about by a series of judicial reforms in 2017. GRECO concludes that Romania has implemented satisfactorily or dealt with in a satisfactory manner eight out of thirteen recommendations contained in the Fourth Round Evaluation Report, and all recommendations in the Follow-up to the Ad hoc (Rule 34) Report. With respect to members of parliament, it is highly regrettable that no progress has been made with respect to the five outstanding recommendations since the last compliance report. It is important that the transparency of the parliamentary process be further improved and that the use of urgent procedures be reduced. Conflicts of interest and rules on how MPs engage with lobbyists still need to be introduced and a system of independent counselling for MPs to seek advice on integrity matters also needs to be put in place. With respect to both judges and prosecutors, the efforts made to increase the role of the Supreme Council of Magistracy and the Judicial Inspectorate in responding to risks for the integrity of judges and prosecutors have now been positively noted in the implementation of the new laws on the Judiciary adopted and enacted in 2022. Their implementation so far is promising, however GRECO encourages the Romanian authorities to remain vigilant. GRECO welcomes that legislative measures have been taken that largely comply with the two remaining recommendations addressed by GRECO in this Rule 34 (Ad hoc) Procedure. Notably, the new laws on the Judiciary of 2022 went towards providing stronger independence for prosecutors and their operations in the law. They also provided for clarity and predictability as regards liability of judges and prosecutors for judicial errors. As regards the independence of the prosecution service, GRECO takes note that there is work in progress with respect to additional safeguards being introduced, resulting from the work of a Romanian panel of high-level experts, which addressed outstanding Venice Commission recommendations, several of which refer to the issue of the independence of the prosecution service. GRECO welcomes the progress made with respect to judges and prosecutors and encourages the Romanian authorities to continue their efforts regarding the work in progress and to keep it informed on the follow up given to it.
Participation in cultural education activities continues to be limited, with the main barriers being difficult access, insufficient knowledge, and cost, the recently released Cultural Consumption Barometer 2024 shows. The report showed that many Romanians still associate culture with entertainment rather than with personal development or furthering their knowledge. The need for relaxation dominates in cultural […]
Roughly 84% of Romanians say that the pace of the state’s digitalization is slow or very slow, according to an Edge Institute & AtlasIntel study presented at the Digital Governance Summit 2025, which took place on Tuesday, November 25, at the presidential palace in Bucharest. The survey aims to capture the way citizens relate to […]
Romania’s Superior Council of Magistracy (CSM) issued a negative opinion on the new bill regarding magistrates’ pensions. The move is only the latest development concerning a heated issue that led to tensions between the executive and the judiciary branch. CSM’s opinion is consultative, and the government led by Ilie Bolojan can still take responsibility for […]
Romania took the presidency of the Central European Initiative (or CEI) on Wednesday, November 26, according to a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE). The organization is a regional intergovernmental forum established in 1989, following the fall of the Berlin Wall. It gathers 17 Member States in Central, Eastern, and South-Eastern Europe […]
Trade between Romania and Poland continues to grow, with annual bilateral exchanges in goods now valued at more than EUR 12 billion, according to figures presented by the Polish-Romanian Bilateral Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PRBCC). The data was released during a reception in Bucharest marking Poland’s Independence Day and Romania’s National Day. Polish investments […]
As Romania moves closer to implementing the EU Pay Transparency Directive, local employers are preparing for one of the most consequential shifts in workplace regulation in over a decade. The directive, set for transposition by June 2026, introduces strict new rules on salary disclosure, pay reporting, and equal-pay verification, aiming to close persistent gender gaps […]
