Portugal drops one place in corruption index

Portugal has dropped one position in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2023, published today by Transparency International (TI). However, it is still higher than Spain and Greece reports Lusa.

In the document the organisation recalls the resignation of the prime minister, António Costa, in the context of “Operation Influencer”, and concludes: “after years of delay, stricter regulations on lobbying should be a priority”.
The index does not make many references to Portugal, which remains in a very similar position on the list, with 61 points against 62 last year, on a scale in which 100 is perceived as ‘very transparent’ and 0 as ‘very corrupt’, writes Lusa.
The average for European Union region was 65 points (64 for the European Union alone).
Denmark and Finland continue as the highest ranked countries, with Portugal behind France, Austria, Belgium and the United Kingdom, but ahead of Spain, Italy and Greece. Denmark was the least corrupt country.
As a country, Portugal occupies a tied 34th position with Lithuania.
The CPI, launched in 1995, is the main global benchmark for corruption in the public sector, providing an annual comparative snapshot of 180 countries and territories. The index for 2023 is calculated using data from 13 external sources.
This year’s study hows that in general terms most countries have made little or no progress in combating corruption in the public sector, Lusa continues — and this appears to have been perfectly illustrated in the scandal currently unfolding in Madeira.
For 12 consecutive years, the global CPI average has remained at 43 points “and more than two-thirds of countries have recorded a score of less than 50%, indicating the existence of serious corruption problems,” said the statement from TI, which is based in Berlin.
In the document, TI notes that the countries with the lowest scores in the CPI are also those with the lowest scores in the Rule of Law Index, from the organisation “World Justice Project” (an independent organisation that works to promote the rule of law), adding that the world is experiencing a decline in the functioning of justice systems, and there is a link between access to justice and corruption.
In the CPI, Somalia, Venezuela, Syria, South Sudan and Yemen (16) occupy the lowest positions, all countries affected by protracted crises and armed conflicts.
In the Rule of Law Index 2023, Portugal scored 0.68 (with 1 being the strongest adherence to the rule of law and 0 the worst rating), and dropped one place from the previous year. It scored better in the factors “restrictions on government powers” and “fundamental rights”, and worse in “criminal justice”.