Swedish statement on openness
01 January 1991
Swedish statement on openness
bacdoc February=1997
Statement issued by
MINISTRY OF JUSTICE
Stockholm, 14 March 1996
Swedish position concerning openness in the European institutions
An increased degree of openness and transparency in the
institutions can be achieved in various ways. Sweden favours the
inclusion of the general principle of access to documents in the
Treaty. Another aspect of openness is to increase public access
to meetings. However, this measure would not be the best way to
make the Union more open to its citizens as there must always be
meetings in the decision-making process that are closed to the
public. Otherwise, Member States' opportunity to discuss freely
and to arrive at compromises would be jeopardized.
Due to its longstanding tradition on open government, Sweden
considers that the most efficient way to increase openness in the
European institutions is to ensure that citizens have access to
documents that form the basis for the discussions and decisions.
A general principle of public access to official documents
guarantees that the activities of the decision making bodies and
the administration are conducted under the control and
observation of the public.
The reasoning behind a principle of public access is that the
institutions must be open to the citizens and the media to enable
them to choose the information they wish to obtain, independently
of the information services of the institutions. Obviously, it
is also important for the institutions to provide information
about their activities.
A principle of public access to official documents facilitates
possibilities for the European Parliament, national parliaments,
associations, individuals and the media to follow and participate
in the decision-making process. It therefore strengthens the
democratic nature of the institutions and public confidence in
the administration. Furthermore, the principle makes the
administration more efficient because ail parties and civil
servants know that they operate under the public eye.
A general principle of public access to documents must be coupled
with rules on secrecy to protect specific confidential interests,
such as security reasons, public safety, relations to third
countries, business and financial secrets and the protection of
individuals and of privacy.
The basic elements of a principle of public access to official
documents are already part of the Community legal order. Also,
the right of public access to official documents has been
recognized in the practice of the Court and forms part of the
common constitutional traditions of the Member States. However,
it is now time to give the principle a more direct and solid
legal basis in the Treaties.
A principle on the right to access to official documents of the
EU
institutions should be applicable within the institutions
themselves. There is no need to harmonize the national rules
concerning openness. The Member States will still have the
competence to decide how these matters should be handled at the
national level, taking due account of the principle of loyalty
in Art. 5 in the EC Treaty.
In the light of what has been stated above, the most important
elements that Sweden would like to have inserted in the Treaties
are as follows:
1. The citizens shall have a right of access to official
documents held by
any EU-institution.
2. A definition of `official' documents should comprise both
documents
that have been forwarded from and submitted to an institution.
3. A catalogue of the specific interests that may restrict the
public access to official documents.
4. An obligation for the Council to adopt rules containing the
necessary restrictions.
5. A right for the applicant to appeal against a decision by
an institution not to give access to an official document
6. An obligation for the institutions to have public registers
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