# For the common good or private interests? People’s views of political integrity in the European Union URL: https://www.transparency.org/en/publications/common-good-or-private-interests-political-integrity-european-union Type: Publication or report Published: 2021-09-28 Updated: 2021-10-05 --- 28 September 2021 Political corruption scandals, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, have shown that decision-makers and corporate interests often collude at the expense of ordinary people in the European Union (EU). This collusion leads to poorer services for citizens and decisions that go against public interest on issues ranging from climate change to education and taxation. While this complicity and undue influence may happen behind closed doors and in subtle forms, ordinary citizens can see when resources and outcomes are skewed in favour of certain groups. This leads to lower levels of trust and the perception that the system lacks political integrity. Political integrity means exercising power consistently in the common good, rather than to sustain private interests or the wealth or position of powerful individuals. This working paper introduces a new measure, People’s Perceptions of Political Integrity (PPPI), in order to understand how different countries in the EU are faring and to identify the main factors that affect these perceptions. The PPPI is based on five survey questions asked as part of the *[Global Corruption Barometer – EU 2021](https://www.transparency.org/en/gcb/eu/european-union-2021)* survey. The PPPI shows that people in the EU perceive a widespread and systemic lack of political integrity. The average country score on the PPPI is 48 out of 100, where 0 is the lowest and 100 is the highest possible score. Even the top-performing countries sharing first place, Finland and Sweden, score only 67 points out of 100. ### Related publications ## [Ending Debt Secrecy: Recommendations to the G20 on Anti-Corruption in Sovereign Borrowing and Lending](https://www.transparency.org/en/publications/ending-debt-secrecy-g20-recommendations) Publication • 04 September 2026 Recommendations to the G20 to strengthen transparency, accountability and integrity in sovereign borrowing and lending ## [Regional Assessment of Integrity in Political Finance in South Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia](https://www.transparency.org/en/publications/integrity-political-finance-asia) Publication • 03 September 2026 This report reviews systems across 17 countries to identify the areas of political finance most in need of reform. ## [Monitoring political finance: Compendium of citizen initiatives and good practices](https://www.transparency.org/en/publications/monitoring-political-finance-compendium-of-citizen-initiatives-and-good-practices) Publication • 18 August 2026 This compendium aims to provide ideas for stakeholders interested in monitoring political finance. It presents seven monitoring and disclosure solutions from around the world,… ## [Annual Report 2025](https://www.transparency.org/en/publications/annual-report-2025) Publication • 17 July 2026 In 2025, Transparency International pursued its mission to stop corruption and promote transparency, accountability and integrity at all levels and across all sectors of society. ## Priorities - [Political integrity](https://www.transparency.org/en/our-priorities/political-integrity) ## GCB - [European Union](https://www.transparency.org/en/gcb/eu/european-union-2021) ## Regions - [European Union](https://www.transparency.org/en/region/european-union) ![Paper's cover showing people's hands raised at a march](https://images.transparencycdn.org/images/PI-working-paper-cover.jpg?auto=compress&fit=crop&fm=webp&w=1200) [Download](https://images.transparencycdn.org/images/2021_CommonGoodOrPrivateInterests_WorkingPaper_ENG.pdf)