Keeping Up Appearances: Anti-Corruption and Transparency During COVID-19 Health Crisis

The paper analyses the impact of COVID-19 emergency status on public's perceptions of corruption and integrity from a comparative perspective between two European countries, namely the UK and Romania by focusing on two scandals at top level, close to the PM's offices. The paper argues that during the time of crisis the public becomes more sensitive to perceived corruption than in 'normal times'. Hence, maintaining the appearance standard becomes essential as the perception of lack of integrity can break the fragile trust in institutions that already struggle to manage the crisis.