Malta vs EU27 average
Malta87%
EU27 average71%
+16 percentage points — Malta is 16 points above EU27 average.
Source: Eurobarometer – June 2026 and Malta factsheet.
Factcheck: Corruption
Malta’s attitude towards corruption · Eurobarometer
87% of people in Malta say corruption is widespread.
A data story about Malta, Europe, political scale and how people perceive public power and institutions.
Political scale test
≈71%
7 in 10 Labour voters believe corruption is widespread.
Even after counting every non-Labour voter, every non-voter and every invalid vote, we do not reach 87%. Labour voters account for 31%.
Sources: Eurobarometer, Malta; Malta Electoral Commission, 2026 General Election registered voters, votes cast, valid votes and party valid-vote shares.
87%
say corruption is widespread
Eurobarometer survey Malta
≈41%
non-Labour valid voters
as share of registered voters
≈14%
non-voters and invalid votes
also counted in Labour’s favour
≈31%
still has to come from Labour’s side
≈71% of Labour’s own vote
Plain English
Take the most generous possible view for Labour. Say every person who did not vote Labour thinks corruption is widespread. Add everyone who did not vote at all. Add invalid votes too. You still do not get to 87%.
To reach 87%, around 7 in 10 Labour voters have to think corruption is widespread as well.
This is a scale estimate from the size of the voting blocs, not a direct party-by-party Eurobarometer table.
100-person picture
Imagine 100 registered voters. The blue and gold dots give Labour every possible benefit of the doubt. Even then, the red dots are still needed to reach the 87% Eurobarometer figure.
≈32% from Labour voters
≈41% from non-Labour valid voters
≈14% from non-voters / invalid votes
≈13 outside the 87%
EU Comparison
Malta ranks 7th highest in the EU.
The 2026 survey places Malta above the EU27 average and below only six member states.
Malta vs Greece
Malta87%
Greece99%
-12 percentage points — Malta is 12 points below Greece.
Source: Eurobarometer – June 2026.
Malta vs Finland
Malta87%
Finland25%
+62 percentage points — Malta is 62 points above Finland.
Source: Eurobarometer – June 2026.
Country ranking · 27 member states + EU27
1
GreeceEL
99%
2
CyprusCY
95%
3
PortugalPT
94%
4
SpainES
92%
5
SloveniaSI
90%
6
CroatiaHR
88%
7
MaltaMT
87%
Show more countries
8
BulgariaBG
86%
9
LithuaniaLT
86%
10
HungaryHU
83%
11
ItalyIT
82%
12
CzechiaCZ
79%
13
LatviaLV
79%
14
SlovakiaSK
78%
15
FranceFR
77%
—
EU27 averageEU27
71%
16
RomaniaRO
71%
17
BelgiumBE
69%
18
IrelandIE
67%
19
AustriaAT
59%
20
GermanyDE
58%
21
NetherlandsNL
56%
22
PolandPL
54%
23
EstoniaEE
53%
24
SwedenSE
53%
25
LuxembourgLU
48%
26
DenmarkDK
25%
27
FinlandFI
25%
Perception vs evidence
The public mood is not floating on its own.
This section separates public perception, expert assessment, institutional findings and proceedings.
Public
87%
Eurobarometer Malta
Say corruption is widespread — 16 percentage points above the EU27 average for corruption perception by its own residents.
Source: Eurobarometer, Malta factsheet and report.
Expert / business
49/100
Transparency International CPI
A separate perception index based on expert and business assessments.
Source: Transparency International CPI 2025.
EU assessment
No robust track record
Rule of Law Report
The European Commission says Malta has developed tools to reduce the length of high-level corruption investigations, but a robust track record of final judgments has not yet been achieved.
Source: European Commission, 2025 Rule of Law Report — Country Chapter Malta, anti-corruption framework section.
Procurement
59%
Public tenders
Think abuse of power is widespread among officials awarding public tenders.
Source: Eurobarometer, Malta factsheet: “officials awarding public tenders”.
Where people point · Malta
Political connections are the core of the story.
The Malta figures point to a structural perception: people are not only worried about individual misconduct, but about whether access to power, permits, tenders and enforcement is shaped by political connections.
Giving/taking bribes and abuse of power widespread among…
Political connections · Malta vs EU27
Source: Eurobarometer, Malta factsheet and EU27 report.
Reporting corruption · Malta
Reporting looks risky and unrewarding.
The largest barriers in Malta are protection, punishment, proof and trust.
Trust to report
39%
would trust the police to deal with a corruption complaint
That compares with a 59% EU27 average in the same survey.
Malta39%
EU2759%
Source: Eurobarometer, Malta factsheet and EU27 report/factsheet.
Most important reasons not to report · Malta
No protection from retaliation
42%
Reporting would be pointless; responsible people will not be punished
41%
Difficult to prove anything
36%
Reporters get into trouble with police/authorities
31%
Everyone knows and no one reports
28%
Not worth the effort
26%
No one wants to betray anyone
16%
Do not know where to report
11%
Source: Eurobarometer, Malta factsheet.
Who would people trust most? · Malta
The police
39%
Specialised anti-corruption agency
25%
National Ombudsman
23%
Media, newspapers, journalists
19%
EU institutions
13%
NGOs or associations
12%
Justice system
12%
None
9%
Political representative
6%
Trade unions
5%
Source: Eurobarometer, Malta factsheet.
Methodology and assumptions.
- Data source: European Commission, Citizens’ attitudes towards corruption in the EU in 2026, Malta factsheet and survey page.
- Malta fieldwork: 5 February 2026 – 24 February 2026. Malta sample: 518 interviews.
- The Labour-voter argument is a scale estimate using registered voters, valid votes, non-voters/invalid votes and Eurobarometer QC2. It is not a direct party-support cross-tab.
- Question wording matters. Percentages refer to the exact Eurobarometer questions shown in the factsheet.
- Perception-vs-evidence sections distinguish between public perception, expert/business indices, institutional findings, investigations and final judgments.
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