International

SP Euro-MP Dennis de Jong was today appointed a member of the special European Parliamentary committee on organised crime, corruption and money laundering. De Jong was one of the MEPs who put their names to the initiative which led to the committee’s establishment. Before he was first elected to the European Parliament, De Jong worked for many years in the Dutch national civil service in the fight against corruption. In that context he organised an international conference on the subject and was amongst those responsible for drafting the UN Convention against Corruption. ‘Corruption makes an effective approach to the crisis in southern Europe impossible,’ he says. ‘Combating corruption must therefore also become the EU’s top priority.’

The special committee will investigate all aspects of corruption and organised crime, whether within the government, the business world, or the financial sector. Every year EU countries lose an estimated €120 billion through corruption. De Jong will argue vigorously for criminal prosecution of speculators who have knowingly taken irresponsible risks. ‘Many people don’t understand how the bankers whose reckless behaviour caused the financial crisis are not liable to criminal proceedings. It’s not easy to explain why in the US bankers have ended up behind bars, while in Europe this has happened hardly ever, if at all.’

In 2011, together with other Euro-MPs from a range of political groups, De Jong presented an action plan against corruption. The plan contained concrete recommendations for addressing corruption, including increasing transparency within the EU institutions and in relation to EU spending, the protection of whistle-blowers and the exclusion of corrupt firms from public procurement tenders.