Conflict of interest, the blind trust is coming. The topic is being brought to the attention of the Constitutional Affairs commission of the Chamber, which is examining four bills that re-regulate the resolution of conflicts of interest by replacing the existing 2004 legislation. And in the commission meeting scheduled for tomorrow, the decision will probably be drafting of a unified text.
The provisions regarding the prevention of conflicts of interest apply to holders of national, regional and local government offices as well as, depending on the bills being examined by the Montecitorio commission, to members of Parliament, the president and members of the authorities independent.
Among the means of resolving the conflict of interest, we note the introduction of a typically Anglo-Saxon institution such as the blind trust, or the obligation to transfer the assets to a single trust company authorized to operate through a trust mandate without representation , or the assignment to a fiduciary management.
The bills also provide for sanctions, in the form of a pecuniary fine directly applicable by the Antitrust or by an ad hoc Authority.
The obligation to declare cases of conflicts of interest has also been confirmed, providing for a mandatory list of situations and balance sheet data to be declared, in compliance with a tighter timing than the current one. Furthermore, with respect to the regulatory framework in force, the number of obliged subjects is extended.
A common feature of the proposals is the identification of a more stringent system of incompatibility with respect to current legislation.
But what is meant by conflict of interest? According to the 2004 law, this exists in the case of participation in the adoption of an act, or even omission of a due act, which brings a benefit to the owner (or to a relative), or which is performed in one of the situations of incompatibilities established by law. The system identified by the bills is instead aimed at preventing the adoption (or omission) of acts in the presence of situations of conflict of interest, which must be resolved before assuming public office.
In essence, the proposals being examined by the Constitutional Affairs commission have a "preventive" nature, ie they differ from the current legislation which provides for mainly subsequent intervention.
