French corridors of power open to corruption

ONE of the findings of Transparency International's Global Corruption Report 2009 is that France 'has much progress to make in terms of the integrity of relationships between public officials, politicians and businesspeople'.

Research by the organisation into the tactics and methods used by businesses around the world to gain influence has found that it has a detrimental impact on their staff, but ultimately on consumers.

In France gaining influence has shifted from bribery to event sponsorship, financing of study trips and the hiring of relatives of public servants.

Transparency International say such tactics are not adequately regulated in France, and that the country is still living under the shadow of major corruption scandals which took place in the 1990s.

The fall out from this though is that many of the elite institutions have made it more difficult for wrongdoing to be investigated, with new procedures introduced and budgets for detailed legal investigations restricted.

The report comes at an interesting time as former president Jacques Chirac is set to face the courts over corruption charges during his time as mayor of Paris.

While President Sarkozy has faced charges of nepotism as he pressed for his son to head a government agency that oversees the French capital’s wealthy La Defense business district.

Transparency International is calling for more checks on the lobbying of government by business, as well as ensuring the courts have the powers to carry out their work (via Frogsmoke).

Related article: France slips down press freedom league table

Comments

[mrlemarquis]

This report isn't really a surprise for people who know France and the French system. The existence of "influence" is part and parcel of almost every French person's life.
The French word "piston" is maybe not used as frequently as before, but everyone who wants to go anywhere in life, even in simple things like becoming a State employee requires a "piston"!
Yes - just like the original meaning of the word, a "piston" in French means "something which enables advancement" (as a piston in a car motor) but in this context is applied to a person who you know who is in a position to "advance" things - quicker, and they still exist in their hundreds of thousands.
I doubt that the same - or similar things happen elsewhere in the World, under different names, and always will! My only piston could have possibly been my own Father, but who wants to become an ill paid minister of religion....!