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EU: ACCESS TO EU DOCUMENTS: Presidency criticised: Even worse than the Commission: The Danish EU-presidency has failed to unite member states on new access rules for the EU-institutions

01 May 2012

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"Its no secrecy that member states have different opinions on access rules. But now the split comes out in the open. Swedish minister of justice Beatrice Ask (conservative) has instructed the Swedish EU-ambassador not to endorse a negotiating mandate proposed by the Danish presidency.

"Minister Ask explains why in a comment to this website: 'If the mandate would give space for improved openness I would be the first to vote yes, but I believe that would be wishful thinking as things stand right now. The mandate will pull in the opposite direction, and there is even a risk that it is worse than the Commission's proposal from 2008.'

"It is understood that the main issues for the Council of the European Union are:

"- Definition of a document. A new article defining when a document is finalized and thus accessible has been added. The article says a document is included 'when finalized for the purpose it was intended.' - this is the same as the Commission's proposal to replace the definition of a 'document' in place since 1993.

"- Whole categories of documents are to be kept outside the scope - documents on infringement procedures (member states accused of breaking EU-law), on competition (cartels, mergers and state-aid cases) and documents related to court proceedings.

"- Advice from legal services on disputed matters are also to be kept outside the scope – an exemption judged by the Court of Justice to be unfounded according to the present regulation.

"- Data protection likely to overrule the right to access.

"- Veto for Member States on release of documents sent to the institutions"

See: Full article (Wobbing.eu, link)

See Statewatch's Observatory: Regulation on access to EU documents: 2008-ongoing

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