Report: Germany lacking in campaign finance transparency
February 26, 2018
Germany has not taken enough steps to provide transparency in political party financing, the Council of Europe said in a report on Monday.
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An expert anti-corruption committee at the Strasbourg-based body said that out of 20 previous recommendations only nine have been sufficiently implemented since the last audit report seven years ago.
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One recommendation that remains to be carried out is to lower the threshold for what is considered a large donation. Currently, only donations upward of €50,000 ($61,600) must be reported.
More transparency, more timely
In addition, the body said Germany should require political parties to become more transparent about financing in a timely manner. The Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) would also like Germany to ban anonymous donations. The limit for anonymous donations is currently set at €500.
The report issues an "urgent appeal" to "prioritize" seven outstanding recommendations.
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GRECO, which was established in 1999 to tackle active and passive corruption, consists of experts from the Council of Europe's 47 members plus the United States.
The Council of Europe is an international forum for debates on European issues. Unlike the European Council, it is not part of the European Union's institutions.
cw, ng/kms (AFP, dpa)