Romania gets a good report on the battle against corruption in the latest assessment by the Commission. Deservedly so. The last few months have seen important steps forward. Verdicts have been reached in high-level corruption cases. The Civil Code is in force and working. New rules have been put in place for appointing judges to the High Court. There is new legislation in parliament to allow for the extended confiscation of the proceeds of crime, which I hope will be enacted very soon.
The report recognises the work of Romanian institutions in tackling corruption. The statistics speak for themselves – 15 high-level corruption cases solved in first instance in the High Court in 2011 compared to two in 2010; 158 final court decisions in cases brought by anti-corruption prosecutors in 2011 compared to 85 in 2010. This has required the courts to speed up their procedures, prioritise their workload, and make use of the new processes available in the Small Reforms Law.
Earlier this week I met with Romania’s Superior Council of Magistrates to discuss how the new Codes and laws will be implemented in the courts, and their plans for increasing the efficiency and accountability of judges in 2012. I repeated the UK’s offer to all institutions in Romania to help meet the benchmarks of the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism. We have brought experts from the UK to Romania to advise on various issues, from court administration to asset forfeiture.
It’s worth underlining why this is so important to Romania, and to its relations with the UK. There are few things more important to a foreign investor than having the confidence that disputes over contracts will be resolved swiftly and predictably by the courts. Or that public contracts will be let in a transparent manner, without conflicts of interest. And it’s essential for our bilateral cooperation with Romania in law enforcement that the proceeds of a crime committed in one EU Member State can be confiscated in another.
So this week’s report is good news for British companies in Romania. It’s good news for prosecutors who need to have the powers to seize the proceeds of crime. It’s good news for Romania that the reforms continue and the country is becoming more competitive as a result – in the efficiency of its public institutions and as a destination for foreign investment.