The EU on Thursday proposed a new ethics monitor as it grapples with the fallout of a European Parliament graft scandal, but the plan was called insufficient by critics.
The long-awaited push to improve standards among politicians and bureaucrats in Brussels has been in the pipelines since it was pitched by European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen in 2019.
But it won fresh urgency after a high-profile probe into European Parliament bribery allegations against Qatar and Morocco, which have denied any wrongdoing.
"Democracy in Europe can thrive only if people trust the institutions and such trust is not a given. We have to earn it," said EU values and transparency commissioner Vera Jourova.
She called for the plan to be implemented "as soon as possible" ahead of European parliamentary elections next June.
The new ethics body - which is expected to have just three employees - would be the first-ever covering the EU's main institutions, the European Council, commission and parliament.
The commission said binding "common standards for ethical conduct" will be set relating to the taking gifts and hospitality from third parties, declaring assets and side jobs.
But the proposal was savaged by EU lawmakers and activists for failing to give the body any investigative powers and the ability to punish wrongdoing.
The centrist Renew group in the parliament insisted it would not back the proposal for a "toothless ethics body".
The Greens called the plan "underwhelming, underpowered and uninspired".
"This proposal the Commission has put forward today is for a body that is not independent, will not have investigatory powers and will not be able to sanction breaches of ethics rules," said German MEP Daniel Freund.
Gaby Bischoff, from the Socialists and Democrats group, called it a "a complete missed opportunity".
The clamour for tougher policing of EU officials and politicians comes in the wake of the so-called Qatargate scandal that has rattled faith in the bloc.
The probe into alleged influence peddling at the European Parliament exploded into the public domain when Belgian police arrested suspects and netted over €1.5 million in cash in December.
It centres on accusations that Qatar and Morocco sought to buy off MEPs to tilt the parliament's discussions in their favour.
The two countries deny any involvement in wrongdoing, as do three socialist MEPs implicated by the Belgian authorities.
Transparency International said the "watered-down" proposal "would not be able to clean up the mess left by Qatargate".
"This proposed ethics body reinforces the EU's business-as-usual, self-policing approach to misconduct," the NGO's deputy director for Europe Nicholas Aiossa said.
"If the EU is to be serious about combatting corruption within its own ranks, it must ensure that any independent oversight body has the power and resources to investigate and sanction members engaged in wrongdoing."