13 Jun 2017

Spain’s Transparency Lottery

2018-11-13T10:03:19+01:00

[Article first published on eldiario.es (in Spanish)] Helen Darbishire, Executive Director Madrid, 13 June 2017 - If the person reading this article had to place a bet, which information would you say it’s easier to access: the salaries of advisers to the ministers or the documents that guide Spanish Cabinet discussions at its traditionally secretive weekly Friday meetings? What’s certain is that talking about transparency in Spain is like buying a lottery ticket: the lack of a government transparency policy makes obtaining information feel more playing roulette than exercising a fundamental right. In fact, Access Info managed to

Spain’s Transparency Lottery2018-11-13T10:03:19+01:00
7 Jun 2017

Spanish Government takes open government secrecy battle to High Court

2018-11-13T10:03:20+01:00

Madrid, 7 June 2017 – In baffling reluctance to be transparent about its own open government policies, the Spanish Government has appealed to the High Court against last month’s lower court ruling that it should provide Access Info Europe with progress reports on commitments under the Open Government Partnership (OGP). “It’s amazing that the Government is fighting so hard to keep secret information about what it’s doing to advance open government,” stated Helen Darbishire, Executive Director of Access Info Europe. The documents on what each Ministry is doing under the OGP Action Plan were first requested by Access Info Europe

Spanish Government takes open government secrecy battle to High Court2018-11-13T10:03:20+01:00
4 May 2017

Victoria en los tribunales: El Gobierno deberá ser transparente sobre sus políticas de gobierno abierto

2018-11-13T10:06:29+01:00

Madrid, 4 de mayo de 2017 – En una importante victoria para la transparencia en España, el Tribunal de lo Contencioso Administrativo dictamina que el Ministerio de Presidencia debe entregar a Access Info Europe una serie de documentos relacionados con las acciones que el Gobierno lleva a cabo como parte de la Alianza para el Gobierno Abierto (OGP). Esta importante sentencia, que avala la resolución del Consejo de Transparencia y Buen Gobierno (CTBG) y contribuye al desarrollo de jurisprudencia en derecho de acceso a la información en España, establece que para que la sociedad civil pueda participar en la toma

Victoria en los tribunales: El Gobierno deberá ser transparente sobre sus políticas de gobierno abierto2018-11-13T10:06:29+01:00
14 Jun 2016

Spain: The State of Transparency in a Year of Change

2018-11-13T10:04:10+01:00

Madrid, 14 June 2016 - In the run-up to a second general election in less than a year, Spanish political parties are struggling to live up to their pro-transparency discourse as they offer voters weak transparency agendas for the coming legislative term. As campaigning for the 26 June elections swings into full gear, Access Info Europe is running a reality check on the state of transparency in Spain: what is being done, what isn’t, and what needs to be done to guarantee citizens’ right to know. Second election, halved commitments When at the beginning of the month the Access Info

Spain: The State of Transparency in a Year of Change2018-11-13T10:04:10+01:00
19 May 2016

Spain’s extortionate Sunshine Tax is “a final solution for renewable energy”: What do the documents tell us?

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

Madrid, 19 May 2016 - On the day that the news is full of the fact that Portugal this month had four straight days of zero emissions energy production using renewable sources (full story here), documents obtained by Access Info Europe using Spain’s Transparency Law reveal the tense political battles behind a controversial 2015 law that imposes prohibitive taxes on use of home-produced energy (such as from solar power). Spain – a country replete with sunshine, wind and waves – could be breaking the same records as Portugal, but instead the renewables sector has been undermined and citizens who generate

Spain’s extortionate Sunshine Tax is “a final solution for renewable energy”: What do the documents tell us?2018-11-13T10:04:11+01:00
15 Feb 2016

Lobbying Regulation: An Ongoing Question For Spain

2018-11-13T10:04:12+01:00

This article was originally published by ALTER-EU. Madrid, 15 February 2016 - Lobbying is currently not regulated in Spain, and despite the entry into force of the new access to information law, it is still almost impossible for the public to find out who is influencing which decision-makers, with what means, and to what effect. This is despite the eruption of new political parties, such as Podemos and Ciudadanos, which have helped to introduce into the political agenda issues of conflicts of interest caused by unregulated lobbying and the revolving door phenomenon. The lack of regulation and transparency around lobbying

Lobbying Regulation: An Ongoing Question For Spain2018-11-13T10:04:12+01:00
2 Dic 2015

Los documentos utilizados en la toma de decisiones no son «internos» según el Consejo de Transparencia

2020-02-14T13:57:26+01:00

Madrid, 2 de diciembre de 2015 - En otra importante resolución del Consejo de Transparencia y Buen Gobierno (CTBG), se ha concedido a Access Info Europe acceso los informes de progreso del gobierno español sobre los compromisos de la Alianza para el Gobierno Abierto, OGP, por sus siglas en inglés. La decisión del Consejo de Transparencia rechaza los argumentos dados por el Ministerio de la Presidencia de que estos documentos, que fueron utilizados como parte del proceso de toma de decisiones, son "documentos internos". En agosto de 2015 la directora de Access Info, Helen Darbishire, pidió copias de los documentos

Los documentos utilizados en la toma de decisiones no son «internos» según el Consejo de Transparencia2020-02-14T13:57:26+01:00