Exploring the Links Between Democratic Practices and Corruption Through a Relational Analysis: Insights from the UK and Italy

This paper adopts a relational framework to examine the interplay between corruption and democratic practices in a globalized society where corruption transcends borders and technology amplifies its pervasiveness, making detection and accountability increasingly challenging. It is part of a study that employs the “Players and Arenas” analytical framework, originally developed in social movement studies, to identify key actors—both individuals and organizations—the arenas in which they operate, and their dynamic interactions that shape public policy processes. The analysis draws on interviews, official documents, including court proceedings and parliamentary investigations, as well as media and NGO reports, to examine two cases involving lobbying, revolving doors, and political finance, paying attention to the role of digital technologies in both cases. These cases centered around the former British Prime Minister David Cameron and the former Italian Governor Giovanni Toti, whose actions led to corruption investigations in the UK and Italy, respectively, with differing outcomes. While Cameron faced no punishment due to the absence of clear rules regulating the use of non-official communication channels such as WhatsApp and emails for lobbying, Toti was placed under house arrest and later pleaded guilty to charges of corruption and illicit campaign financing. The study reveals that cases initially perceived as domestic in scope, such as those involving Cameron and Toti, often present cross border dimensions, underscoring the global interconnectedness of corruption and anti-corruption practices. The findings also suggest the critical roles of policy, market, law enforcement, media, and civil society arenas in both corruption and anti-corruption efforts, extending beyond the traditional scope of network-based approaches. Corrupt practices are shown to frequently exploit legal gray areas or bypass regulations to shape decision-making processes and the policy cycle for private benefit. Conversely, anti-corruption efforts often rely on individuals—politicians, managers, journalists, and prosecutors—capable of identifying and exposing situations where influence becomes corruptible, even when such actions are not legally classified as corruption. These individuals play a pivotal role in raising awareness and, in some cases, taking action to address and curb such practices. Both cases illustrate how legitimate practices such as lobbying, revolving doors and political finance can become corruptible in the absence of transparency and clear official rules to curb conflicts of interest. In addition, it is worth noting that the Players and Arenas framework provided a valuable tool for capturing nuances that other approaches to corruption are less likely to consider, such as strategic relationships, privileged access, and arena-switching for private gain at the expense of the collective.