In 2013, a report by Transparency International revealed that political parties, Parliament, the judiciary and the military are the most corrupt institutions in Portugal.
[3] The exposure of high-profile corruption cases in the media and the limited political engagement have contributed to poor public perception of political corruption in Portugal.
Recurring corruption scandals involving high-level politicians, local administrators and businesses abusing public funds have revealed that safeguards to counter corruption and abuse of power have been relatively inefficient, according to the National Integrity System Assessment 2012 by the Portuguese chapter of Transparency International (TIAC).
[6][7] Access to financing and inefficient government bureaucracy are considered the most problematic factors for doing business, according to the surveyed business executives from World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2013–2014.
However, the same report reveals that, when asked if they had actually witnessed corruption, only 1% responded positively (with an EU average of 5%).