Competition complaint reignites debate over access to documents

Date: 28/02/02

By Laurence Frost

MEPs are braced for a fresh confrontation with the European Commission over access to documents, after they voted unanimously to demand papers relating to the alleged mishandling of a competition complaint.

The European Parliament's petitions committee has given the EU executive until 21 March to produce the minutes of a meeting between Commission staff and former company director Paul Gregory.

A Parliamentary official said MEPs had been 'taken aback' by the Commission's refusal to supply the minutes to Gregory.

Glyn Ford, a Socialist member of the committee, said: 'The argument the Commission has used is that the documents are confidential. But it seems to me that if you're present at a meeting you should be entitled to see the minutes.'

Gregory says competition officials attending the 1989 meeting promised action against rival multinational Dynopack, which he claims had used anti-competitive agreements with distributors to drive his own company, Microwave Ovenware Limited, out of business.

'We were assured that trade between member states had been badly affected and there had been multiple breaches of articles 85 and 86 [now 81 and 82] on anti-competitive behaviour and abuse of dominant position,' said Gregory.

It was not until five years later that the Commission said no action would be taken because Dynopack's behaviour had had 'no appreciable effect' on trade between member states.

Members of the petitions committee say the Commission's refusal to supply the minutes runs counter to the agreement struck last year on a new regulation granting public access to documents held by all EU institutions.

'This flies in the face of President Romano Prodi's stated support for the new agreement,' said Ford, who added that the committee would not take no for an answer.

'If the Commission refuses point-blank we're looking to get involved at a higher level in the Parliament,' he said.

'This can and will become a new cause célèbre.'

Gregory's case is already hailed by small business groups as an example of bureaucratic indifference to injustices perpetrated against small firms by larger rivals - despite a 1999 decision by the EU Ombudsman that cleared the Commission of maladministration.

Competition Commissioner Mario Monti's spokesman could not say whether the minutes would be handed over to the parliamentary committee.

'We will certainly reply to the questions the petitions committee has put to us,' Michael Tscherny said.

MEPs are braced for a fresh confrontation with the European Commission over access to documents, after they voted unanimously to demand papers relating to the alleged mishandling of a competition complaint.