From Dennis de Jong, MEP
| Dear journalist,
Have you encountered problems with undue secrecy and lack of public scrutiny inside the EU institutions? How do you find access to information about the decisions of the Commission and Council? Have you had trouble finding out about the work of bodies such as the European Parliament Bureau? As part of my work on transparency, integrity, and efforts to strengthen access to documents at EU institutions, I would like to hear from you. I want to ensure that EU institutions are accountable to the public. This means safeguarding journalists’ access to EU documents and internal information so that you can do your job and ensure power remains in the hands of the people, not an elite group of politicians. Last year, the European Parliament approved my report on the “role of whistle-blowers in the protection of EU’s financial interests”. Now I want to propose concrete measures to strengthen legislation for open access to documents of the Parliament, Commission and the Council, and broader measures for transparency and integrity in the EU. I would be grateful if you could please email me with examples from your own experience of problems you have faced in accessing information in EU institutions while covering current affairs in Brussels or from member states. I would also like to hear the solutions that you propose in order to solve these problems. This information will be treated in full confidence and anonymity. Your input will help me to plan an initiative at the European Parliament for journalists and other stakeholders to collectively address these concerns and for me to make your voices heard in my role as co-Chair of the Intergroup on Integrity, Transparency, anti-Corruption and Organised crime (ITCO). Yours Sincerely, Dennis de Jong, MEP |