III International AlaveteliCon, the Freedom of Information (FOI) technologies conference
Helen Darbishire2021-04-14T10:16:35+02:00Date: 23-24/09/2019 Place: Oslo
Spain: Access Info presents report to UN Human Rights Council on violations of right of access to information
Helen Darbishire2020-01-29T10:36:45+01:00Madrid, 01 August 2019 – Access Info has submitted to the UN Human Rights Council a report on the ways in which the right of access to information is violated in Spain and has called on the Spanish government to bring the legal framework into line with international standards. Specifically Access Info has called for recognition by the Spanish government of access to information as a fundamental right, which would end discrimination against requesters: currently the identity requirements mean that only those who are Spanish citizens or residents can submit requests. Furthermore, a failure to educate the wider public about
Madrid-based NGO CIECODE wins pan-European Citizen Participation prize
Helen Darbishire2020-01-29T10:39:27+01:00Madrid, 30 July 2019 – The “Think and Do Tank” CIECODE has taken first prize in an EU-funded competition to develop a software tool that aids citizen participation The competition was organised by Access Info and its partners as part of the YOU4EU project, run under the EU’s Europe for Citizens programme. The winning application "Personal Political Analyst” was developed with the collaboration of Open Government Chair of Polytechnical University of Valencia and the Valencia Provincial Council. It is a voice assistant built on top of Google Platform that allows queries and consultations of the electoral promises made by the
European Ombudsman: European Commission was wrong to withhold its legal advice on the future Lobby Register from Access Info
Helen Darbishire2020-01-29T10:39:42+01:00Madrid, 14 June 2019 – The European Ombudsman has found the European Commission guilty of maladministration for not releasing to Access Info the Commission’s legal advice on the reform of the European Union’s register of lobbyists, known as the Transparency Register. Today’s decision by the Ombudsman comes after a three-year tussle over whether or not Access Info should have been provided with the Commission’s analysis about the legal basis for regulating lobbying in Brussels, the world’s second largest lobby capital after Washington. The initial request for information was made by Access Info in May 2016 at the height of discussions
Contest: Digital solution for citizen participation
Helen Darbishire2020-01-29T10:49:27+01:00You have an idea for a new app or platform which can enable better communication and cooperation of citizens in addressing the problems of their communities? You think that digital democracy can support higher inclusion of citizens in policy-making? If your answers to these questions are positive, we invite you to share your idea about innovative digital solution which would strengthen citizen activism and improve the communication between citizens and decision-makers. We will select maximum 5 best ideas, while a grant award in the amount of 2,000 Euros will be awarded to the winner with the aim of developing the
2019 European Elections: an evaluation of the political manifestos
Helen Darbishire2019-05-31T12:06:24+02:00A few hours away from the European Elections, Access Info invites for European citizens to elect their next representatives. Because well informed voting is crucial for our future, we evaluated the electoral programs of five countries in which the representation is high, for their transparency in European Union activities. Among these countries are: France, Germany, Italy, Spain (only available in Spanish), and the United Kingdom. The methodology used is as follows: Thematic Choice: A number of transparency-related topics have been evaluated. Transparency of decision making within the EU institutions and in the processes are two of them. Legislative initiative, transparency
Electoral program evaluations in collaboration with Poletika
Helen Darbishire2020-02-14T11:13:06+01:00Madrid, 24 April 2019 - For several years, as a member of the Poletika platform, Access Info Europe has evaluated the transparency commitments in the election manifestos of Spain’s political parties. These evaluations are published on Poletika’s webpage as part of the section on Democratic Quality (in Spanish: Calidad Democrática). In line with our commitment to transparency, we are publishing the methodology by which we made these evaluations. The evaluation is divided into five sub categories of equal importance, each assessed on a 2-point rating system for a total of 10 possible points. Recognition of access to information as a
Spain: Access Info calls on Government to use Regulation to strengthen the Transparency Law
Helen Darbishire2020-02-14T11:13:28+01:00Madrid, 5 April 2019 – In its comments submitted to the public consultation on the draft Regulation for Spain’s 2013 Transparency Law, Access Info has urged the government to take the opportunity to strengthen the right of access to information, with measures such as simplifying the request procedures. Specifically, Access Info has recommended that the new Regulation permit requests by email in place of the current complicated process whereby only persons with a an electronic ID or digital certificate and make requests via the Transparency Portal. “It is especially worrying that in Spain so few requests are made because of
Access Info Europe helps create the CONSUL Democracy Foundation
Helen Darbishire2020-01-29T10:40:21+01:0022 March 2019 – Access Info Europe, together with civil society partners from across Europe, meeting today in Amsterdam, created a new foundation to promote citizen engagement in decision making using the CONSUL participation platform. The CONSUL Democracy Foundation will promote citizen participation worldwide and will oversee the use and development of the largest open source digital democracy platform – CONSUL, a citizen participation tool currently in use by over 100 institutions in 35 countries. CONSUL is an open source platform, whose development was started by Madrid City Council in 2015 and has since been taken up and expanded by municipalities
Access Info once again urges Spain to recognise access to information as a fundamental right
Helen Darbishire2019-04-17T10:53:20+02:00Madrid, 12 April 2019 – When Spain elects a new government on 28 April 2019, one of its pending tasks is to ensure that the weak transparency law is reformed to meet international standards, and to recognise a fundamental right in line with the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. To this end, Access Info has proposed that in its next Open Government Partnership Action Plan, Spain commits to recognise the right to information, with measures such as removing identification requirements for requesters and ensuring that the law applies to all branches of power not just the executive