Focus on the judiciary

OECD: Austria must do better on bribery

There is room for improvement in the fight against bribery in Austria.(Bild: stock.adobe.com/Rawpixel Ltd.)

The OECD has reminded Austria to press ahead with the implementation of the Convention on Combating Foreign Bribery. Clarity is required, for example, with regard to judicial prosecution.

Important progress has been made in recent years. However, according to a recent evaluation report, important issues need to be addressed in order to ensure that the Austrian authorities can effectively combat the bribery of foreign public officials. 

According to the working group, court proceedings for bribery of foreign public officials have led to a high number of acquittals. Furthermore, criminal prosecution against legal entities is severely limited, which is why sanctions should be tightened.

OECD sees problems with the public prosecutor's office
Another problem is still the independence of the public prosecutor's office in Austria, which had already arisen before the most recent evaluation questions.

The 46-country OECD Working Group on Bribery in International Business Transactions has just completed its Phase 4 evaluation of the implementation of the Convention. Further clarifications are also suggested in the report with regard to the offense itself. This concerns, for example, the statute of limitations, criminal charges against legal persons, the protection of public prosecutors and out-of-court solutions.

Improvements also noted
The report also cites positive developments in Austria. For example, the resources of law enforcement agencies specializing in the fight against corruption have been significantly improved. The practice of granting legal assistance has also improved.