Oct182023

XIII Meeting of the Network of Anti-Corruption Agencies and Offices to discuss the application of the Law on the Protection of Whistleblowers

Barcelona, october 18, 2023.- The Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia has organized the XIII Meeting of the Network of Anti-Corruption Agencies and Offices, held in Barcelona, at the headquarters of the College of Architects of Catalonia. During the meeting, the application of the Law on the Protection of Persons Reporting Regulatory Infringements and the Fight against Corruption, which came into force on 20 February and which transposed Directive (EU) 2019/1937 on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law, was discussed during the meeting.

During the meeting, the different anti-corruption agencies and offices shared information on the volume of requests for protection received, the procedure applied, the cases of granting and the denial of protection, among others.

A number of internal presentations have been made on the above-mentioned topics. In addition to the representatives of the different agencies and offices, speakers specializing in the protection of whistleblowers from different perspectives participated.

The professor of Administrative Law at the University of Barcelona, Òscar Capdeferro, presented the paper “Implementation of Law 2/2023. Interpretative consensus”, which focused on the protection files of the aforementioned law.

Beatriz García Moreno, also a professor of Criminal Law at the University of Castilla-La Mancha, explained the “Internal Information System” focusing on the responsibility of the obliged entity and that of the person responsible for the internal system, as well as the principle of non-incrimination.

On the other hand, throughout these two days, the intelligence strategy based on data analysis has also been analysed, and representatives of the agencies and offices of the network have shared ideas, projects and achievements in this area.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the Anti-Fraud Office of Catalonia, the Agency for the Prevention and Fight against Fraud and Corruption of the Valencian Community, the Office for the Prevention and Fight against Corruption in the Balearic Islands, the Office for Transparency and Good Practices of the Barcelona City Council,  the Municipal Office against Fraud and Corruption of the Madrid City Council, the Court of Auditors of the Canary Islands, the Office of Good Practices and Anti-Corruption of the Autonomous Community of Navarre, the Council of Accounts of Galicia, the National Anti-Fraud Coordination Service of the General Intervention of the State Administration (SNCA), the Independent Office for Regulation and Supervision of Procurement of the Ministry of Finance and Public Function.

 

Oct132023

The Andalusian Office against Fraud and Corruption and the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency will collaborate in the study of the phenomenon of corruption

Valencia, October 11, 2023.-  The director of the Andalusian Office against Fraud and Corruption, Ricardo Vicente Puyol, and the director of the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency, Joan Llinares, have signed a framework collaboration agreement between both institutions.

The objective of the agreement is to establish a permanent channel of communication and collaboration in order to improve efficiency in the fulfillment of its objectives. In this way it is established that they will collaborate in those cases in which both entities have competence, and also when one of them is aware of a matter, which may correspond to the competence of the other.

They will also share knowledge and practical experience in the prevention of fraud and corruption, the promotion of integrity, public ethics and transparency.

An important part of this collaboration will focus on sharing work methodologies for which exchange stays will be carried out between both institutions in order to improve the training of their staff. The first of these exchanges took advantage of the signing of the agreement that took place in Valencia where the directors of the areas of research, legal, training and administration of both institutions held bilateral working meetings.

They will also carry out joint training actions, prepare studies on the prevention of corruption, or in the organizations of dissemination and training activities for citizens.

The director of the Andalusian Anti-Fraud Office, Ricardo Vicente Puyol, highlighted the activity carried out by the Valencian Agency, as “a reference institution in the field of prevention, training and protection of whistleblowers” and stressed “the importance of undertaking coordinated actions at the regional level to increase the effectiveness of our respective competences”.

 

The director of the Valencian Anti-Fraud Agency, Joan Llinares, congratulated the Andalusian Office for the work they are doing and that “highlights the important role that regional offices and agencies are playing in the fight against fraud and corruption”.

The Andalusian Office against Fraud and Corruption was created in 2021 by Law 2/2021, of June 18, on the fight against fraud and corruption in Andalusia and protection of the whistleblower. At the head of it is the magistrate Ricardo Puyol, elected by the Andalusian Parliament and who was Magistrate-Judge of the Courts of Instruction number 1 and 2 of Marbella, coinciding with the period of emergence of the largest cases of corruption in this municipality of Malaga.