Brussels, 28/09/2011 (Agence Europe) - On “International Right to Know Day” on Wednesday 28 September, the European Ombudsman called on the administration of the EU to be more “proactive” when it comes to access to documents and information. “I am concerned about the consistently high number of transparency-related complaints I receive every year. Many EU institutions are still too reactive in their approach to public access and some even seem to be defensive in their thinking”, said P. Nikiforos Diamandouros.
In fact, more than one third of the Ombudsman's investigations focus on complaints concerning a lack of transparency in the activities of the European administration. In order to make it easier for the public to access documents, Diamandouros recommends that staff be appointed, with responsibility for information in the institutions and bodies of the EU. Their role would be to ensure the right of access to documents for the citizens, organisations and businesses. The Ombudsman also pleaded for useful online registers, oriented towards the citizens, not only to inform them about available documents, but also, as far as possible, to allow direct access to the public. This would allow the citizens to obtain a document immediately, without having to make a request for access. In this context, Diamandouros referred to an example of “good practice” in the United States, where the government is developing a single website containing all proposed regulations generated by nearly 300 Federal bodies. (OL/transl.fl)