In its “2022 Report”, published on Thursday 15 June, the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) warns of the restrictive application of the right of access to information in certain European States, which still have a wide margin of discretion in determining what is - or is not - in the public domain. This is despite the fact that access to official documents is essential to effectively prevent corruption.
“Any exception to the rule of public disclosure should be limited to a minimum and be thoroughly justified”, said Marin Mrčela, President of GRECO, who emphasised the need for public procurement, public oversight and access to official documents.
The report recommends “targeted training” to establish a common understanding and application of standards such as the “Committee of Ministers recommendation on access to official documents” (2022).
In his introduction, Mrčela welcomed the close collaboration with the European Union, which has observer status with GRECO.
“The door continues to be open for a full EU membership”, he continued. “The developments around allegations of bribery and foreign influence vis-à-vis the European Parliament at the end of the year would appear to confirm the merit of looking at a closer engagement of the European Union within GRECO”.
Link to the report: https://aeur.eu/f/7hz (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)