Accountability refers to appointed officials (cf. representatives in Parliaments, Senate, elected government bodies, judges, etc.) who ought to be accountable for their decisions and actions as they perform their duties. On February 2022, the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers adopted specific recommendations (CM/Rec(2022)2) on the accountability of elected representatives and elected bodies at the local and regional levels that clearly state that:
- decision makers take responsibility for their decisions;
- those decisions are reported on, explained, examined and, where appropriate, questioned or sanctioned; and
- there are effective and proportionate remedies for inappropriate decisions or omissions and any resulting actions or inactions;