The European Parliament voted in Strasbourg on Thursday to set up a new body for ethical standards to combat corruption in European Union institutions and monitor rules on lobbying and corruption.
The agreement was reached between the eight main EU institutions, each of which has still to sign it. To date they have monitored their own affairs internally
Parliament was prompted to act by the December 2022 Qatar corruption scandal that saw Belgian prosecutors investigating Greek politician Eva Kaili, who had served as one of the parliament's 14 vice presidents since the start of that year, along with other suspects.
The allegations included corruption, money laundering and involvement in organized crime, along with influence peddling involving the governments of Qatar and Morocco.
The new body would develop, update and interpret common minimum standards for ethical conduct, and publish reports on how these standards were being reflected in each of the individual institutions, the European Parliament said.
It will be able to conduct investigations and to recommend sanctions, supported by five independent experts.
"The fact that the new body can also deal specifically with individual cases is an enormous negotiating success. Today, we are creating more transparency, laying the foundation for greater citizen confidence in European democracy," rapporteur Daniel Freund said.
Conservative members of parliament pointed to difficulties. The body would take its decisions on the basis of moral rules that needed explanation, rather than clear legal rules and standards, Sven Simon of Germany's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) said.