There has yet to be compliance with the 2024 European Commission Rule of Law Report's recommendations concerning the limited access of the Audit Office to information, an issue that hampers its ability to conduct effective audits, a European Commission official said this week during a meeting in Nicosia with the Parliamentary Committee on Institutions, Values, and the Commissioner for Administration, according to a statement by the House of Representatives.

The president of the Parliamentary Committee, Demetris Demetriou, and committee members Andreas Pasiourtides and Irene Charalambidou, met with a European Commission delegation led by Corinna Ulrich, Director of International and Horizontal Affairs of the Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs, to discuss and exchange views on the 2024 Rule of Law report for Cyprus. The delegation also included Nikos Isaris, Head of the European Commission Representation in Cyprus, Grigoria Gavriilidou, and Nestor Lambros from the Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs.

Ms. Ulrich said that Cyprus has made satisfactory progress on the European Commission's recommendations but reiterated that the rule of law remains a top priority for the EU. She noted that the 2024 report includes, for the first time, four country-specific chapters addressing rule of law developments in EU candidate countries: Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia.

She also pointed out that there is still no compliance with the recommendations regarding the limited access of the Audit Office to information, which impacts its ability to perform effective audits. Additionally, concerns remain about the financial, human, and technical resources available for the Independent Authority against Corruption to effectively carry out its duties.

The head of the European Commission delegation stressed the importance of the timely and effective functioning of the judicial system to restore citizens' trust.