[PIO] Announcement by the Cyprus Representation to GRECO regarding the publication of the Second Addendum to the Second Compliance Report of Cyprus

The Second Addendum to Cyprus' Second GRECO Compliance Report, adopted on 27 November 2023 and published as a public document on Tuesday 9 January 2024, assesses the additional measures taken by the Cypriot authorities to implement the outstanding recommendations issued in the Report of the Fourth Round of Evaluation of Cyprus to GRECO, dealing with "Prevention of Corruption with regard to Members of Parliament, the Judiciary and Prosecuting Authorities".

In the Evaluation Report, GRECO addressed sixteen (16) Recommendations to Cyprus. In the Addendum to Cyprus' Second Compliance Report, GRECO concluded that Cyprus had satisfactorily implemented or satisfactorily addressed nine (9) Recommendations, while six (6) had been partially implemented and one had not been implemented. Compliance with the seven (7) remaining outstanding recommendations is addressed in the context of this Report, which effectively ends this Round with the Recommendations deemed to be partially implemented.

1. With regard to Members of Parliament, GRECO appreciates the adoption of a Code of Conduct in 2021, combined with monitoring, advice and enforcement mechanisms, encouraging authorities to view it as a living document that adapts to include new emerging issues related to integrity and risks as they arise. GRECO also welcomes the introduction, and further refinement in 2023, of rules on the representation of interest groups (lobbyists). There is introductory training on ethics issues in which Members of Parliament and their assistants are invited to participate, but no regular training is organised throughout the parliamentary term. Additional upgrades of the financial reporting system (financial disclosure) are still needed, in particular as regards its effective supervision and enforcement. A new bill is currently under parliamentary discussion but has not yet seen the light of day.

1. As regards the judiciary, all recommendations have been addressed (see previous reports).

1. As regards the Prosecutor's Office, only one recommendation is pending, concerning the reform of the Legal Service and the independence of prosecutorial functions. GRECO welcomes the bill, which is still before Parliament. It notes however that the Bill could benefit from additional refinement to ensure that the individual legal officers/prosecutors are able to carry out their duties in a more autonomous manner, subject to the safeguards required by the rule of law. GRECO calls on the authorities to address without delay the planned reform of the Republic's Legal Service.

The GRECO Report itself, in English and Greek, is available on the website of the Legal Service of the Republic and at website of the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO).

(ΕΠ/ΝΖ/ΑΦ)

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