EU Report Criticizes Italy Over Media and Conflict of Interest Issues

Rome: The 2025 Rule of Law Report has criticized Italy for its inadequate implementation of past recommendations concerning media protection and conflicts of interest. The report highlights Italy’s shortcomings in addressing these significant issues.

According to Ansa News Agency, the report notes “some progress” in adopting a legislative proposal on conflicts of interest. However, it points out “limited progress” on establishing comprehensive lobbying rules and creating an operational lobbying register, which would include a legislative footprint. The report further criticizes Italy for making “no progress” in tackling the practice of channeling donations through political foundations and associations, as well as in implementing a single electronic register for party and campaign finance information.

Despite these criticisms, the report acknowledges that while relevant rules and initiatives for journalist protection are in place, journalists in Italy continue to face challenges in their professional activities. On a more positive note, the report mentions an improvement in the public’s perception of judicial independence. It states that 46% of the general population and 48% of companies perceive the level of independence of courts and judges as “fairly or very good” in 2025. This marks a significant increase compared to 2024, where only 36% of the general public shared this view, and 34% in 2021.