Cour des comptes Reveals Fragmented and Underprioritized Anti-Corruption Efforts in France

A comprehensive report published by France's Cour des comptes on December 9, 2025, delivers a critical assessment of the nation's anti-corruption policies over the past decade. Despite numerous legal texts implemented since 2013 to combat corruption, the report highlights a troubling lack of coherence and political will, along with insufficient resources dedicated to the fight against corruption.

The report underscores that since 2013, anti-corruption laws have been modified over ten times, often in reaction to specific events like the Cahuzac scandal and high-profile penalties such as the $772 million fine imposed on Alstom by U.S. authorities in 2014. Yet, the absence of a unified strategy since 2022—the new anti-corruption plan was only validated in November 2025—has resulted in fragmented actions across various actors, diminishing the effectiveness of prevention efforts.

Public trust in elected officials remains low, with 74% of citizens perceiving widespread corruption. Alarmingly, there is an increasing normalization of corrupt practices, especially locally, with about a third of respondents deeming some corrupt acts as justifiable or not severe. While corruption cases reported by police rose by 51% from 2016 to 2024, the total number remains modest at 934 cases in 2024. Similarly, French courts issued 324 corruption-related sanctions in 2022, with convictions stable at 300 to 400 annually over the last 15 years.

The Cour des comptes expands the definition of corruption beyond mere unlawful benefit solicitation to include related offenses such as illegal interest-taking and public fund embezzlement aimed at manipulating state or local government decisions. However, contracts linked to the arms sector were excluded from the analysis due to their complex international justifications.

The report points to the Ministry of Economy and Finance prioritizing tax fraud over anti-corruption and cites chronic shortages in financial and legal resources. It recommends empowering the French Anti-Corruption Agency to oversee compliance, enhancing whistleblower protections, and improving the punitive system, noting that more than half of corruption cases do not proceed to prosecution and legal processes endure significant delays.

This critical evaluation serves as a wake-up call for French authorities to consolidate efforts, renew political commitment, and implement a more robust and coherent framework to effectively combat corruption and restore public confidence.