Madrid, 18 May 2021 – Access Info Europe today issued a legal analysis of the draft of the Austrian Freedom of Information Act, expressing concerns over shortcomings such as the narrow definition of information, the absence of an independent oversight body, and the lack of a sanctions regime for non-compliance.
Date: 18/05/2021 Access Info Europe Executive Director, Helen Darbishire, took part in the webinar "A global call to action to transform the way governments serve their citizens", adressing the institutional framework for Open Government in Spain and the attitudes of the Spanish local and central governments in the framework of Open Government Partnership. The event, which was organised by the Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation in the frame of the Open Government Week 2021, discussed the 3rd National Action Plan Open Government Partnership in Germany as well the Open Government as a platform for innovation.
Date: 18/05/2021 Helen Darbishire, Executive Director of Access Info Europe, has participated in the round table "Transparency and future challenges" as part of the conference "2021 If you participate, you decide Madrid", organised by the Madrid City Council in the framework of the Open Government Week. The event, moderated by the Director General of Citizen Participation of the Madrid City Council, Maria Pía Junquera, also included the participation of: Rafael Ayala González, member of Modelos de Gobierno Abierto. Antonio Relaño, Director General of Transparency of Madrid City Council. Dolores González Pastor, member of APRI, Association of Institutional Relations Professionals. Olga Quirós,
Netzpolitik | 17/05/2021 A new law will abolish Austria’s official secrecy and give the country its first real freedom of information law. But the government’s proposal has many weaknesses, according to experts of the NGO Access Info. Read more...
Date: 14/05/2021 Helen Darbishire, Executive Director of Access Info Europe, participated in the panel "Opportunities for the implementation of the Tromsø Convention", as part of the Forum "Right to Аccess of Public Information. 10 years of Freedom and Challenges", which was organised by the Centre for Democracy and Rule of Law. She was joined by: Tetyana Oleksiyuk, Council of Europe Consultant; Taras Shevchenko, Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine; David Goldberg, Expert on Freedom of Information, Scotland; Gergana Jouleva, Executive Director on Access to Information Programme, Bulgaria; Igor Rozkladai, Deputy Director, chief expert on media law at Centre
Date: 13/05/2021 Helen Darbishire, Executive Director of Access Info, participated in the seminar Accountability in complex democracies: the role and relevance of the accountability of the Prime Minister to Spanish society, organised by the Centre for Political and Constitutional Studies (CEPC). This seminar kicks off a series of discussion events on specific aspects of accountability, with the aim of obtaining from them rigorous and useful information to improve the accountability of the Spanish government as much as possible. She was joined by the following speakers: Francisco Martin Aguirre. Director of the Department of Planning and Monitoring of Government Activity. Presidency
Madrid, 11 May 2021 – Access Info Europe and 97 civil society organisations and individuals today expressed concern about the Russian authorities' persecution and harassment of Ivan Pavlov, freedom of information advocate and lawyer defending opposition leader Aleksei Navalny's Anticorruption Foundation.
Date: 20 and 27 April and 4 May 2021 The VIII Congress on the Advancement of Open Government and the VI Congress on Good Governance and Transparency of the Valencian Region were held under the title Multilevel Asymmetries of Transparency and the Right of Access. The Executive Director of Access Info Europe, Helen Darbishire, participated in the closing of this event organised by Lorenzo Cotino, Andrés Boix and Jorge Castellanos, professors of the Department of Constitutional Law, Political Science and Administration of the University of Valencia. The Transparency Observatory, a research project of the University of Seville, also contributed to
Date: 28/04/2021 Connecting financial integrity and open government agendas in Europe, FACTI Panel briefing for European governments and civil society organisations Co-hosted with Access Info Europe In Europe and beyond, the Open Government Partnership (OGP) offers a platform through which governments and civil society actors are co-creating political commitments on a broad range of areas including the fight against corruption, tax fairness and asset recovery for development. Synergies between OGP and the FACTI Panel’s work may bring impulse to financial integrity and the financing of the Sustainable Development Goals. Therefore,the Panel would like to present its recommendations to European governments
Date: 27/04/2021 Helen Darbishire, Executive Director of Access Info Europe, participated on 27 April in the panel "Democratic Challenges of Open Government, Public Innovation and Citizen Collaboration", as part of the conference organised by the National Institute of Public Administration (INAP) of Spain: "Open Government, Public Innovation and Citizen Collaboration". She was joined by officials from the Central Government and other Spanish public administrations, as well as members of the academia and from civil society organisations at national and international level. During the meetings, the following topics were discussed: New democratic challenges posed in the new political and administrative context; Measurement