The recent ”Qatargate” corruption scandal, in which some MEPs were involved, shows the complexity of the criminal phenomenon, which reaches the highest level, and demonstrates that the mechanisms and means used in some European countries are now outdated, believes Social Democrat MEP Victor Negrescu.

“This creates a reputational and perhaps even a legitimacy crisis. The most wrong and dangerous thing is to get out of this situation through decisions taken behind closed doors or populist measures,” he says.

Thus, in an editorial published on Euractiv.com, Romania’s representative in the European Parliament proposes a set of solutions that aims to directly involve all relevant actors, experts and institutions in an open process aimed at identifying the right measures, validated by people recognised for their impartial perspective on corruption and transparency.

”Those trying to portray the scandal as being only the responsibility of the European Parliament are wrong. It should be a matter of concern for all EU institutions and also for European leaders. The current situation should not be used to mismatch targets. We need to fight against corruption and for integrity and transparency while continuing to do our job”, says Victor Negrescu, further stressing the need to make visible the valuable work done by fellow MEPs to advance the EU decision-making process as well as the importance of acknowledging their merits. ”Few know about the meticulous work required for tabling amendments, the long negotiations needed to reach a compromise, the struggles of many MEPs to get the one-minute intervention in the plenary, needed to show their work, the difficult administrative load imposed for the management of offices or the limitations when it comes to the capacity of the European Parliament to actually generate or influence legislation at European level. All these issues need to be improved to allow MEPs to focus on their task of drafting legislation. I am proud of the work many of my colleagues are doing and I am not afraid of saying that”, points out the social-democrat MEP.

For these transformations to be successful, Victor Negrescu believes that we must work transparently with the civil society and listen to the voice of the EU citizens, because changes cannot be achieved behind closed doors.

”We need specific integrity measures, a checks and balances system, more transparency in the decision-making process at the level of all institutions, stronger rules designed to avoid and counter foreign interference, to regulate lobbying, and to offer proper support to whistle-blowers in EU institutions. More accountability and responsibility are needed”, he specifies.

Finally, for the European Parliament to regain its reputation of having been for years the most respected EU institution in the eyes of citizens, sometimes ranking above national institutions in some Member States, including Romania, Victor Negrescu believes that we should address the people directly and regain their trust, beyond the reforms that would be made at institutional level.