Press release: ALDE calls for greater powers for the European Ombudsman
In light of recent public scandals, Liberals and Democrats in the European Parliament have today demanded greater powers for the EU Ombudsman, by tabling an amendment to the annual report on its activities. The ALDE Group believes the European Ombudsman should have binding powers regarding access to documents of the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Council. Currently, the European Ombudsman’s power to view any EU document held by the institutions and her recommendations to release these documents to the public is not binding and can be refused by the institutions.
Cecilia Wikström, Chair of the PETI-committee, commented today: ”Even if it is not very frequent, there are cases in which the Ombudsman did not get access to certain documents. To be able to perform its duties with regards to maladministration of the European institutions, the European Ombudsman needs to be able to act on his or her own behalf and not be dependent on the goodwill of the European institutions.”
Beatriz Becerra, ALDE-Coordinator in the PETI-committee, added:
“The European Ombudsman’s goal is it to support the EU institutions in becoming more effective and transparent. It is high time to ensure that she is able to order documents to be released if she thinks it is necessary to do so. This would facilitate the European Ombudsman’s work and improve the public’s access to documents significantly.”
