Brussels, 25/04/2001 (Agence Europe) - The European Parliament's Freedoms and Citizens' Rights Committee approved the draft compromise over the regulation (foreseen by Article 225 of the Treaty) relating to access to documents belonging to the European institutions (see EUROPE of 25 April, p, 11), whose ambiguous formulation concerning the "national arrangements" was removed. The text now foresees that the national institutions and administrations consult the institute of origin before releasing or refusing access to a text from a Community institution.
The draft was also approved by the European Commission (during its meeting in College), which finally renounced its insistence for the documents concerning infringement procedures to be explicitly present among the exceptions for access to documents (as foreseen in its initial proposal: Ed.) as well as by the Member States within Coreper. This text must still be formally approved by the European Parliament plenary before being definitively ruled upon by the Council.
During a press conference, the Swedish Permanent Representative, Gunnar Lind, welcomed this agreement. While welcoming "a major progress for transparency", he recognised that it still requires "more years to create a culture of transparency". In a press release, Commissioner Michel Barnier indicated for his part, that the Commission feels that this draft regulation, as it exists today, constitutes a very significant progress for transparency and the legitimacy of the functioning of the Union institutions. This result was also welcomed by the President of the parliamentary committee, Graham Watson (British Liberal), as well as by the two rapporteurs, Michael Cashman (British Labour) and Hanja Maij-Weggen (Dutch, EPP). In a press release, Mr. Watson says that "Mr. Solana's decisions of last summer aimed at limiting access to documents will be annulled and new arrangements set up for parliamentary examination of classified documents". Speaking of a change in culture in European institutions, Mr. Watson adds: "It's good news for democracy, and I hope that it will receive Parliament's full support in plenary on Thursday".