Corruption in the European Union has hit "breathtaking" new levels and drains more than $160 billion from the economy, the BBC reports.
A new report from a European Union commission studied levels of corruption in the 28 EU member states and found bribery, among other things, is prevalent.
The BBC reports:
In Croatia, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Romania, and Greece, between 6 percent and 29 percent of respondents said they had been asked for a bribe, or had been expected to pay one, in the past 12 months.
There were also high levels of bribery in Poland (15 percent), Slovakia (14 percent) and Hungary (13 percent), where the most prevalent instances were in healthcare.
Ms Malmstroem said corruption was eroding trust in democracy and draining resources from the legal economy.