Cancellation of candidates catalogue sparks concern

Date: 25/07/1996

THE cause of transparency in the European Parliament has suffered a set-back with the abrupt cancellation of a catalogue providing Finnish voters with professional and personal details of candidates standing in this autumn's European elections.

The pioneering exercise had originally been approved as part of the wider parliamentary information campaign for the Finnish poll on 20 October and was enthusiastically championed by the Parliament's own office in Helsinki.

But as the finishing touches were being made, the project was cancelled by the Parliament's Secretary-General Enrico Vinci after he discussed the issue with the institution's President Klaus Hänsch.

“We have no information on why the decision was taken. We were given instructions from Brussels to cancel the project,” said an official in the Parliament's Helsinki office.

The authors of the catalogue, Nordic Communications, had already compiled details of more than 140 of the 160 Euro-parliamentary candidates on the basis of answers to a 35-point questionnaire.

The absence of any explanation prompted speculation that a small group of sitting Finnish MEPs who intend to stand as candidates in October had lobbied to block the publication to prevent it from raising their opponents' profile.

But that suggestion was swiftly denied this week by Hänsch's press officer.

“The decision was taken as soon as we saw the character of the catalogue. It had nothing to do with sitting members. Questions such as one's wife's income or one's parents professions really have nothing to do with the European Parliament as an institution. If candidates want to hand out these details, then they should come from political groups,” she said.

Nordic Communications managing director Eeva Haltsonen explained that the various questions were designed “to give a picture of the candidates” and that those involved had been told they need not provide information they regarded as particularly sensitive.

“Only six of the questions covered the financing of the electoral campaign.

Others focused on the individuals' background, family, children, education, profession and experience working outside Finland,” she added.

Finnish Green MEP Heidi Hautala, one of five sitting members to have completed the questionnaire, is a firm supporter of the project, which she believes serves the overall interests of the Parliament and of its information office in Finland.

She is contacting Hänsch to establish how the decision to cancel it was taken and wants answers to wider questions on the Parliament's information policy.

“How is the borderline between suitable and unsuitable questions defined? Is there an authorised policy concerning questions on personal electoral financing, personal and spouse's income and property? How and by whom is the general information policy of the member states' offices defined?” she asked Sergio Guccione, the Parliament's director-general for information, last week.

The incident is far from closed. Some Finnish candidates might consider lodging a case of alleged maladministration with the European Ombudsman. It is also unclear who owns the information which has been collected so far.

But by the time that issue is resolved, plans to place details of the candidates on the Internet are likely to be well advanced.