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13 Jul 2015

Spain: Draft Regulation Limits Already Weak Transparency Law

2018-11-13T09:46:12+01:00

Madrid, 13 July 2015 - Access Info Europe and the 65-member Coalición Pro Acceso have strongly criticised the draft implementing Regulation for Spain’s transparency law as a deliberate attempt by the government to further limit an already weak law and have called for it to be redrafted with urgency. Particularly egregious features of the Regulation include inverting the public interest test so that the balance tips in favour of secrecy, and reducing further the kinds of information that can be requested. In response to a poorly-publicised consultation on the draft, the concerns raised in the civil society submission include the

Spain: Draft Regulation Limits Already Weak Transparency Law2018-11-13T09:46:12+01:00
1 Jul 2015

Access Info condemns sabotage of Hungarian FOI law

2018-11-13T09:46:14+01:00

Madrid, 1 July 2015 - Access Info Europe today condemned the proposal by the Hungarian government to amend the Freedom of Information Act in ways that would seriously limit the exercise of the right of access to information in Hungary. Hungarian civil society is reacting strongly to the proposal put by the government to an accelerated decree process in parliament which would result in arbitrary fees for searching for data and for copying and delivering it.[1] Other concerns are that the new rules would permit refusal of requests on the grounds that documents are “preparatory” or the copyright of third

Access Info condemns sabotage of Hungarian FOI law2018-11-13T09:46:14+01:00
24 Jun 2015

European Commission urged to act to improve transparency

2018-11-13T10:04:49+01:00

Madrid, 24 June 2015 – In a letter to European Commission Vice-President Timmermans as part of an ongoing dialogue, Access Info Europe has called for action to improve EU transparency in law and in practice. The pro-transparency organisation stressed the urgent need to bring the EU’s access to documents rules into line with international standards, and raised concerns about problems accessing key documents, as observed in responses to requests submitted on the AsktheEU.org platform. Access Info’s analysis of the EU’s access to documents Regulation 1049/2001 using the RTI Rating, found that although it scores a solid 96 out of 150,

European Commission urged to act to improve transparency2018-11-13T10:04:49+01:00
19 Jun 2015

European Commission fails to prove the need for its postal addresses policy

2018-11-13T09:46:14+01:00

Madrid, 19 June 2015 – Access Info Europe this week expressed concern at the European Commission’s insistence on maintaining its obstructive requirement for all documents requesters to provide their postal addresses, after the Commission admitted in response to parliamentary questions that the policy is based on just one case of “abuse” over the past 14 years. Answering a parliamentary question by MEP Julia Reda, the Commission cited the case of a requester who allegedly used 13 identities to submit requests, the only case they could identify since the access to documents regulation came into force in 2001. Julia Reda immediately

European Commission fails to prove the need for its postal addresses policy2018-11-13T09:46:14+01:00
10 Jun 2015

Civil society urges World Bank to collect and publish beneficial ownership data of contractors

2018-11-13T09:46:28+01:00

Madrid, 10 June 2015 - Over 100 civil society organizations from around the globe including Access Info Europe, on 8 June 2015 called on the World Bank to require that all companies bidding for Bank-financed procurements disclose their beneficial ownership information and that this information be published in an open data format as part of the Bank’s efforts to foster transparency in its contracting practices. Such a move would be in line with current trends to end corporate anonymity: On 5 June 2015, the Norwegian Parliament voted unanimously to establish a beneficial ownership registry, following in the footsteps of the

Civil society urges World Bank to collect and publish beneficial ownership data of contractors2018-11-13T09:46:28+01:00
4 Jun 2015

EU Member States urged to guarantee access to registers of beneficial owners of companies

2018-11-13T09:46:29+01:00

Brussels/Madrid, 4 June 2015 – Access Info Europe has welcomed the adoption of the EU’s Anti Money Laundering Directive obliging Member States to set up a central registry of beneficial owners of companies, but has warned that this information will not be available to investigative journalists and civil society watchdogs unless Member States take steps to ensure that the registers are public. The Anti Money Laundering Directive [1], which EU Member States now have two years to transpose into national law, requires each country to maintain a centralised database on the natural persons behind legal structures, in a bid to

EU Member States urged to guarantee access to registers of beneficial owners of companies2018-11-13T09:46:29+01:00
28 May 2015
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Access Info Europe welcomes European Ombudsman investigation into excessive secrecy of “trilogues”

2018-11-13T09:46:30+01:00

Madrid, 28 May 2015 - Access Info Europe today welcomed the decision by the European Ombudsman to investigate the lack of transparency of “trilogues”, the informal and secretive negotiations between the EU’s Commission, Council and Parliament by which much future legislation is decided. In spite of their crucial role in the legislative process, trilogues are closed meetings, and there is a severe lack of access to key information such as participants, agendas, minutes or documents considered. Access Info has frequently criticised trilogues for violating the fundamental rights obligations of the EU treaties, which require that EU institutions “conduct their work

Access Info Europe welcomes European Ombudsman investigation into excessive secrecy of “trilogues”2018-11-13T09:46:30+01:00
22 May 2015

AsktheEU.org and the EU Institutions: The Challenge of running an Alaveteli Request Platform

2018-11-13T09:46:30+01:00

Madrid, 22 May 2015 - Following AlaveteliCon 2015 in Madrid on 19-20 May, Access Info Europe’s director Helen Darbishire, reflects on 3.5 years of running the AsktheEU.org website for making documents requests to the European Union. In particular she notes the successes, challenges and lessons learned about the relationship with the EU Institutions and public officials. Access Info Europe launched AsktheEU.org on 28 September 2011 on International Right to Know Day at an event in the European Parliament organised by the European Ombudsman. One of our first messages was the desire to cooperate with the various EU bodies in making

AsktheEU.org and the EU Institutions: The Challenge of running an Alaveteli Request Platform2018-11-13T09:46:30+01:00
11 May 2015

Over 100 NGOs urge EU Commission to make the lobby register legally binding

2020-01-29T11:07:28+01:00

Brussels, 11 May 2015 - The Alliance for Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Regulation (ALTER-EU) [1] has urged European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans to take strong and urgent action to create a high-quality and legally-binding EU lobby transparency register in a letter sent to him today, signed by over one hundred non-governmental organisations and trade unions, and supported by the European Parliament Intergroup on Integrity [2]. The letter calls on the Commission to adopt measures to reduce opportunities for unethical lobbying, and to ensure a better balance between corporate and public interest groups in the access to, and influence they

Over 100 NGOs urge EU Commission to make the lobby register legally binding2020-01-29T11:07:28+01:00
Original content developed by Access Info Europe and is made public under a Creative Commons Attribution, Share Alike licence.