At present, the bill, which the Five Star Movement has labeled spazza corrotti (literally, cleaning up the corrupt ), has not yet been published as law; its text, as amended by the Senate, is available on the website of the Italian Chamber of Deputies.
The bill provides for a number of amendments to anti-corruption regulations, in particular:
1. the Bill abolishes the previous provisions according to which the application of punishment for corruption offenses (Art. 319 of the Criminal Code - Receipt of a bribe by an official, Art. 320 of the Criminal Code - Bribery of an official, Art. 346-bis of the Criminal Code - Trading in influence) committed by Italian citizens abroad was possible only in the presence of a request from the Italian Minister of Justice or a petition or statement by the affected party.
At the same time, the need to obtain a request from the Minister of Justice or a petition or statement from the injured party for the application of custodial sentences for corruption offenses committed by foreign nationals on Italian territory is abolished.
(2) The statute of limitations is suspended from the moment of judgment of the court of first instance until the penalty is imposed. This measure will only come into force in 2020.
(3) The possibility of carrying out an operational measure such as bribe provocation is legalized. Previously, "provocateurs" were already able to participate in the investigation of crimes related to terrorism, mafia activity, drug trafficking and some others.
(4) In case of voluntary, timely and effective cooperation, the draft law provides for exemption of a person from liability for corruption offenses, but only if such cooperation began before charges were brought against him/her.
(5) Conviction for financial offenses, corruption in court documents and influence peddling that caused damage to business activities disqualifies the defendant from entering into cooperation agreements with the state.
(6) The provisions of the article providing for liability for influence peddling are expanded: now liability is incurred not only in the case of directly exerting influence on officials, but also in the case of offering to exert such influence.
7. The punishment for corruption offenses is toughened: the minimum term of imprisonment is increased from 1 to 3 years, and the maximum from 6 to 8 years. At the same time, the possibility of applying to persons accused of corruption, embezzlement or extortion alternative punishments to imprisonment in the form of fines or community service is abolished.
8. A ban on holding public office - the so-called DASPO - is introduced for persons who have committed corruption offenses, the term of which may range from 5 years to indefinite suspension. Previously, such a ban was in effect for certain types of corruption offenses and its terms ranged from 2 to 7 years.
9. It is allowed to retain the penalty of confiscation of property imposed by the court of first instance, even if the sentence was later revoked due to amnesty or expiration of the statute of limitations.
(10) Administrative penalties for legal persons for corruption offences are toughened: the effect of disqualification sanctions is increased from the previously stipulated maximum one-year term to a period of 4 to 7 years. The disqualification sanctions include, according to Article 9 of Legislative Decree No. 231/2001 "On the administrative liability of legal persons, companies and associations, organizations without legal personality", the following:
- prohibition to carry out activities;
- Suspension or revocation of permits, licenses or concessions in force at the time of the commission of the crime;
- prohibition to enter into contracts with state structures, except in cases of receiving public services;
- Withdrawal of benefits, loans, grants or subsidies, and possible withdrawal of funds already provided;
- Prohibition of advertising of goods or services.
11 The Law also introduces a number of provisions designed to increase the transparency of the funding process of political parties and movements, such as the need to indicate the names of the funds for all donations exceeding 500 euros.
In addition, the law provides for the obligation of Members of Parliament, ministers and treasurers to publicize all donations received in excess of 500 euros (previously such measures were provided for donations over 5,000 euros).
According toLuigi Di Maio- member of the Five Star Movement, Minister of Economic Development, Labor and Social Policy of Italy, Vice-President of the Italian Council of Ministers - the bill is the first serious anti-corruption measure to be discussed in Italy since the post-war period.
However, the bill was repeatedly criticized, with opposition parties pointing out that it contained various unconstitutional provisions, such as the imposition of additional sanctions (confiscation of illegally obtained property) even in the case of statute of limitations or amnesty.
The approval of the bill was preceded by the publication of a "letter to the corrupt" on the Five Star Movement's blog, in which Luigi Di Maio declared that, thanks to this law, "no one will get away with bribes anymore." The letter ended with an appeal to the blog's readers: "Dear citizens, send a message to Italian corruption using the hashtag #SpazzaCorrotti. they screwed up!"
UPD: Law No. 3 of January 9, 2019, "On Measures to Combat Crimes against State Power, on the Establishment of Statute of Limitations and on the Transparency of Political Parties and Movements" entered into force on January 31, 2019.